Destiny Bearing
by pyrrhic victory
Summary: A sarcastic otter, a hilarious ferret, a clueless squirrel, and an exiled and sinister wildcat…they shouldn’t be in the same story, but they are anyway. Sequel
1. Default Chapter

            ((Thought I was dead, did you? Well, sorry, no such luck, apparently. Not that there haven't been attempts by passing trucks and a couple rabid sheep-frogs. Gotta watch those rabid sheep-frogs…

Anyway, yes, I'm back. I don't know if I'll be able to update quickly at all, but I will try. Promise. Yes, this is the sequel for Vengeance Born, so I suggest reading that one before this one. I have a feeling this story might end up being a bit longer than Vengeance Born, and there'll be at least two parts I've got plotted out that are definitely not going to be happy chapters. So, if you're looking for something light and delicious, I suggest you go find a Three Musketeers bar, because there is no light deliciousness here.

I've also started revising Vengeance Born, because when I went back to reread it, there were a few parts that made my realistic side shudder (not that I care that much about my realistic side anyway) so I figured I might as well try to fix it up a bit. I'll try to keep it so that you can still read through it with it making sense…well…as much sense as I can make.

So, go ahead. Read on.))

            The squirrel had been moving since dawn. So had the foxes, but that was a completely different matter. _They_ were not carrying two huge sacks of food and other assorted items. They would never do such physical labor, not while the squirrel was around to do it for them, and especially not in this type of weather, where the humidity was powerful enough to make it hard for the squirrel to breathe.

            Neither of the foxes was very smart, as opposed to the reputations their race possessed, but they were strong enough to contain a half-starved squirrel. The squirrel often thought, while watching the foxes engage in incredibly idiotic behavior, that their mother must have been the stupidest fox ever to curse the beloved earth with her existence, and their father must have not exactly been an amazing thinker himself. Passing on their stupidity to their sons, the foxes must have had to split whatever intelligence they could have once possessed. How else would they be stupid enough to do half the things they attempted? Even the squirrel knew better than to try to find sanctuary under a tree during a lightening storm like they had done twelve nights ago, and many times before that.

The squirrel glared his hate at the twins, known as Gan and Eitan, before quickly dropping his gaze back towards the ground. He could take another beating, yes, but what was the point in defiance? It had given him only bruises and blood. So had slavery, but defiance and slavery were pretty closely linked if you thought about it as long as he had. What would be the point in defying if you weren't enslaved in some way? What would there be to defy _against_? Nothing, that's what.

            The slave heard something rustle in the forest beside the wandering beaten path he was plodding along on. Weary, but curious and bored, he glanced towards the sound, dulled leaf-green eyes searching for the source of the odd noise. He barely managed to swallow a startled yelp when he saw the outline of an otter in the foliage, keeping pace easily with him. The otter's face, hidden in shadows, turned to look towards him, and white teeth flashed in the darkness, before the beast suddenly speed up and dodged away from the path, disappearing into the darker depths of the overgrown forest. The squirrel came to an abrupt halt as he squinted into the forest, searching for the beast he had just seen. It was possible it had all been a trick his eyes were playing on him, but he doubted it. His eyes had not played such tricks on him for at least a season now. But no matter how much he squinted, he could not find the otter.

            "Squirrel!" Came the angry and whiny voice of Gan, accompanied with the whispering sound of a flying rock, which soon hit the squirrel's delicate left ear. The squirrel hissed at the pain and whirled around, almost losing his balance as the packs that weighed more than he did shifted on his scrawny back. "No time for rest! Keep moving!" Snapped the fox, and turned back around to stomp back down the path.

The squirrel lowered his eyes, and started walking again, ignoring their snickers. He wondered if it really _had_ been his imagination playing tricks on him that had caused him to see something in the forest. For his own sake, he decided not to look again for a while. He didn't exactly need the foxes' anger right now, or ever for that matter. 

            The sun was nearly setting when there came another noise from the forest, this one like a sharp hiss of breath, meant to catch attention. Startled, the squirrel looked back over at the forest, to find another dark shape keeping pace with him in the forest. This one, though, looked almost like a ferret. The squirrel bit his lip, disturbed by this turn of events and hoping the otter was safe, and directed his gaze back on the ground. He heard what sounded like muted laughter, and when he looked again, the ferret was gone.

            When the sun had finally set and the foxes were talking to each other about resting for the night, the squirrel looked up hopefully, and a brilliant flash of green caught his eyes. Two bright green eyes, glowing unnaturally in the fading light, stared out at him from the forest. The squirrel made a strange half-scream half-yelp noise, and the eyes disappeared. The foxes, far from disappearing, looked over their shoulders at the squirrel and scowled.

            "I thought squirrels were brave." One muttered to the other.

            "And _I_ thought we were going to stop for the night when the sun set." His twin snapped back.

            "Fine, fine, you weakling. We'll stop." Replied the fox known as Gan. He turned to the squirrel, "You! Stop walking and make us something to eat. Quick!" He picked up a rock and waved it threateningly. 

            The squirrel stopped obediently and carefully selected a place to start a fire. Unlike the foxes, the squirrel had noticed the dryness of this land. The last thing anyone needed was a forest fire that would kill everyone. Though, the squirrel thought bitterly, if it killed the foxes, he was not so sure he cared if he had to die, too. What stopped him were the others he had seen today. He did not want innocents to be slaughtered simply because he wanted some revenge.

            "Hurry it up, will you, squirrel?" snapped one of the annoyed foxes, accompanied by a familiar whistling noise. The squirrel would have jumped to the side and avoided the rock, but his reflexes had been slowed by a long day of labor. Instead, it hit his left side, thumping against the skin right below his ribcage and, momentarily, knocking the wind out of him. He gasped in air as he continued starting the fire. The foxes would only hit him with more rocks if he tried to even see if any real damage had been done. More rocks was just more pain, and that was just more than the squirrel needed right now. Kneeling carefully the squirrel began to pile small bits of wood onto the growing fire.

            If there were anything in his life that the squirrel enjoyed, it would be the fires. He wasn't mad with it, like some were, but he did like it. It was controlled and manipulated just like he was, but unlike the squirrel, fire was still dangerous, even when confined. Beasts feared fire, while the best the squirrel could manage was a slight bit of intimidation, and not even that for seasons now. The squirrel sighed inaudibly, and began cooking the foxes' dinner. He wondered idly if he would eat tonight. He knew the foxes would have to feed him soon, as he hadn't eaten for at least three days. They would not risk him collapsing and them having to carry their own bags.

            Not long after the squirrel began putting random supplies into the pot, the scent began to waft all over the place. His stomach rumbled in agitated protest, and the foxes behind him grunted back and forth to each other about it smelling good. But the squirrel expected that. What he did _not_ expect was for a female otter, with numerous scars all over her pelt, to suddenly come walking out of the forest and plop down right across the fire from him.

            "Whatever you're cooking smells rather nice, don't you think, Fate?" she asked, but by the end of the sentence she was not speaking to the squirrel anymore; she was speaking to something over his shoulder.

            The squirrel turned to find the most interesting sight had believed he had ever seen in his life. A gigantic, brawny, wildcat had Gan pinned to the ground easily, one foot paw resting in gentle threat on the foxes throat. Gan's brother was unconscious on the ground, a ferret sitting easily on his stomach. The ferret had a wide, mischievous grin on his youthful features, and he looked ready to pull some painful trick on the nearest beast. However, the nearest beast being the wildcat with arms about the size as the ferret's head, the squirrel doubted seriously that the ferret would attempt it.

            "I do think, Red, more than you know, you know." The ferret responded to the otter's question. "I don't suppose you'll mind sharing, will you, squirrel?" The ferret's wickedly gleaming blue eyes traveled over to the squirrel, who was still gaping at all of them.

            "I don't think he's got many brains, but it's the food that matters anyway." The otter said with an apologetic shrug, "Oh, and Dark, knock that thing out so it'll stop trying to plead. It's really annoying, you know."

            The wildcat glanced over at her and his upper lip drew back in displeasure to reveal sharp, strikingly white, teeth. "It continuously astounds me how you think I care about your personal comfort." The wildcat said in a smooth, educated voice. The fox's strangled pleas could barely be heard over the fire's destructive crackling, but the wildcat did as the otter requested. With a simple kick to the forehead, the fox was unconscious, and the squirrel swallowed hard, unnerved by all of this.

            "What…do you want?" The squirrel asked, not used to speaking. His voice was rough, and it creaked like a rusty door.

            "Food, mate." The ferret said as he loped on over and settled down the ground to the otter's right. "And you're cooking some, Red's gone all moral on us, and Dark's hungry for fresh meat. All works out for the benefit of us. I get edible food I don't have to cook, Red gets to silence her conscience, and Dark's got two whole corpses to devour. Oh, and you're not a slave anymore. Ha. Amazing how that works. So, when'll the food be ready?"

            The squirrel gaped at him, showing more teeth than he was aware he owned. "_What_?" he managed after several seconds.

            "The _food_, mate. You know, that lovely stew you're cookin'. When'll it be ready?" the ferret said and shared a long look with the otter that clearly said both of them thought the squirrel a bit dumb.

            "You'll be lucky if you don't kill this one, too." The wildcat remarked darkly as he sat to the otter's left, but with enough space between them to show he did not exactly enjoy the otter's company.

            "Dark, that was completely not my fault. The mouse was _old_. Freedom just was too much for her. It was not my fault at all." the otter snapped back, frowning at the wildcat.

            "Fell face first into the fire, and went up in flames. Would've been marvelous to watch, of course, but the screaming was a bit much." The ferret confided to the squirrel across the flames.

            "That's…_terrible_." The squirrel said, astounded by this new horror.

            "What's terrible is my hunger." The otter corrected, "Now, how long, did you say, it would be before dinner?"

            The squirrel decided that until these beasts were fed, there would be no understanding a word they said. Hopefully, after they got some food down their throats, they would make more sense. "In a few more minutes." He said distractedly, trying hopelessly to figure all of this out.

            The wildcat leaned over the fire and stared into the pot where the stew was cooking. Upon noticing a carrot floating in the stew, the wildcat stood up and stalked towards the unconscious foxes with a disgusted sniff. "I'll go skin one. Don't put out the fire when you're done, squirrel." The wildcat snapped over his broad shoulder.

            "Oh, Darky, aren't you forgetting something?" the ferret called out in a sugary voice that made the otter wince.

            "Don't make me kill you, ferret, really, I just don't have the energy right now." The wildcat replied darkly as he picked up Gan's unconscious body and began hauling it off.

            "But you've gotta _kill_ the fox first, Dark." The ferret shouted after him.

            "Would damage the meat, ferret." The wildcat replied in a moody, dark voice.

            "Ouch. Bet that'll be a rude awakening." The ferret remarked to the otter.

            "Eh. I've had worse." She replied.

            "Oh, really? I bet you haven't." the ferret remarked.

            "A bet, you say? How much?" the otter looked truly interested in something besides food since the first time the squirrel has seen her. Tilting her head towards the ferret, and narrowing her eyes slightly, she waited.

            "Half my portion of stew goes to you if I loose, and half of yours comes to me if I win." The ferret replied calmly, never batting an eye.

            "Deal." The otter said and they shook paws, both, apparently, trying to crush the other's paw while they were at it. The squirrel just gaped at them, unable to comprehend their strange behavior. The squirrel had led a very isolated life, it was true, but there just _couldn't_ be many like these two and their dark companion. If there were, than the world was in much more trouble than the squirrel had bargained on.

            "Now, what's this awakening you've had that's worse than waking up to being skinned alive?" the ferret demanded, crossing his paws across his chest and glaring.

            "On the way back to the Nameless One's castle, on that ship, after Wello died, I was awakened by the deranged sounds of those idiots _singing_. _Singing_, do you hear me? I was about to tear my owns ears off." The otter said, returning the ferret's glare.

            The ferret's angry stare, though, melted into one of friendly commiseration. "Ooh, ow, and you were seasick too. You're right, you've had a worse awakening then that fox's undoubtedly getting right about now." The ferret remarked with a solemn nod.

            "I really hope Darkclaw will have the courtesy to gag this one. We'll be trying to eat soon, after all." the otter replied, rather lightly for someone talking about something like this, and turned her attention back on the squirrel, "Shouldn't you be stirring, or something?" she asked, with a strange little paw gesture thrown in, like her paw was a spoon and she was trying to show him exactly how a spoon was supposed to work.  

            "Oh, yes. Right." The squirrel said and began to hastily stir the stew. Without looking at them, he knew they were sharing that deep, doubtful look they had given each other moments before. It annoyed him slightly to have another beast think he was stupid, not even the foxes had been that ignorant, but there wasn't really all that much he could do about it. He doubted the two of them would respond well if he whapped them over the head with the spoon, and if he went defensive and tried to convince them he was smarter than he seemed, they would probably just think he had lost whatever sanity he had once possessed.

            "It'll be done soon?" the otter asked hopefully, leaning dangerously far over the pot, as if it had never occurred to her in her life that leaning over boiling, bubbling liquid was not the brightest idea. 

            "Very soon. You could eat it now, if you wished." The squirrel responded quietly, shrugging. He preferred to let the stew simmer off on it's own for a while before digging in, but these two, with their stomach-ruled existences, probably wouldn't want to wait.

            "Oh, and I do wish." The otter said with a huge, predatory grin. "Fate, where's the bowls?"

            "How would I know?" The ferret demanded, a bit annoyed by the question. "Maybe Dark took 'em with him to carry the intestines around in."

            "That's sick, Fate." The otter observed, not at all sickened by the idea.

            "Right." The ferret said with an exaggerated eye roll. "I'll go get your little bowls, like a good little servant." His tone was incredibly sarcastic.

            "Good." The otter replied with a nod. "Hurry up."

            The ferret's expression was a strong mix of exasperation and shock. He gaped at her for a while, and then sighed. "Red, all our things are way back where we left them." he whined.

            "Oh, what? It's three steps away, Fate. In the bushes, over in that way." The otter waved her hand towards a lump of poison ivy.

            "I'm not that stupid, Red. I _know_ what that is." The ferret snapped.

            "Damn." The otter replied, "You didn't use too." She pouted.

            "Well, about the sixth or seventh time, I caught on." His tone was dark, annoyed.

            "Look." The squirrel said and pulled out three bowls from the bag nearest him. He tossed two at the creatures across from him and kept one to himself.

            Without even waiting, or asking for any kind of silverware, the two dug their bowls into the stew and began promptly squabbling with each other while gulping down their food, never once mentioning the bet they had just made barely a minute ago. The squirrel stared at them, eyes wide and mouth dangling, as they managed to devour their bowls full of stew in what seemed mere seconds, and go back for more. The problem came when there was about half a bowl left, and they both reached for it. It became a full-blown wrestling match in seconds, involving insults bellowed at the top of their lungs the squirrel wouldn't have ever even said aloud. Noticing the level of stew left, he quickly scooped it up and gulped it down. By the time the others noticed, it was gone.

            "The fiend!" shouted the ferret, which currently had the otter by the throat.

            The otter slapped his paw away and sat up, frowning. "Well, I suppose since he cooked it, it's only right he get some." She said after a moment, but didn't look like she was pleased with this idea.

            "You've gotten all soft-hearted, Red. It's sick." The ferret informed his seemingly near-constant companion with a look of complete disgust on his face. 

            "Soft-hearted?" the otter snapped, "_Soft_-hearted?" With a sudden, unexpected jerk, she shoved the ferret forward, towards the flames.

            The squirrel reacted quickly, lunging to his feet and pushing out a paw, feeling the heat of the relatively small fire. He caught the ferret by the forehead, and shoved him back. The ferret landed sprawled on his back, safe from the flames. If the squirrel hadn't caught him, the ferret would have at least lost an eye.

            "Fate!" the otter said, more angry than concerned, but definitely concerned. She kicked him, still sitting, and then pulled him to a sitting position with the front of his tunic, before punching him hard in his left eye, and sending him falling backwards again. "_Idiot_!" she seethed, "You're supposed to be able to defend yourself and you can't even deal with _me_?"

            "Well, I'm _sorry_ Redsplash, but I don't expect assassination attempts by beasts who recently broke into the Nameless One's _castle_ and went completely nuts in order to save me." The ferret said, his voice a bit nasal too. Apparently, the otter's fist had connected with his nose. 

            "I did not _break in_, I _broke out_!" The otter shouted.

            "Who cares? My _nose_ is _bleeding_." The ferret replied. "You promised you wouldn't hit it again! You _pwomised_!"

            "Oh, well, I'm sorry. I was aiming for your eye." The otter said, sounding a bit calmer now, and a bit smug too.

            "I'm sure you were, you big fat liar." Fatefiend whined.

            "Here." The squirrel said, tossing him a cloth. "Don't lean back like that. The blood'll run down your throat into your stomach or lungs. You'll be hacking the blood up later, and it'll only make you sick."

            "You know medicine?" the otter asked, looking interested in him for the first time.

            "I've had a lot of bloody noses." The squirrel responded.

            She laughed at this and looked like she was about to say something when the wildcat came crashing back through the undergrowth, carrying what looked like what it was: a skinned, bloody corpse of a recently deceased fox. The squirrel swallowed quickly, and turned his eyes up to the wildcat's face, knowing better than to tempt himself to throw up the small portion of food he'd managed to salvage. 

            "Oh, lovely, Dark." The otter said, scowling, and leapt to her feet. "I'm gonna leave before you try to get me to _eat_ any of that."

            "You liked the shrew." The wildcat said with a shrug.

            "I've never _had_ shrew!" Redsplash snapped. The ferret was gagging now, but that might have been because he had not responded to the squirrel's advice.

            An evil smile settled itself smugly on the wildcat's features, "Not that _you_ know about." He responded.

            "There it goes, Dark." The otter said, seeming more irritated than disgusted. "Any trust I once had in you is gone. Hope it was worth it."

            "Oh, definitely." The wildcat responded.

            The otter rolled her eyes grabbed the ferret's left paw, dragging him up. "Come on Fate, and you, squirrel. Let's go somewhere else."

            "There's a stream to the east, not very far. You could use a bath. You've been scaring away all the edibles." The wildcat commented lightly.

            "Edibles?" the squirrel finally managed to squeak something out.

            "Don't get him started. He'll only make you regret asking." The ferret said, with the urgency of one who's made that mistake before.

            "Oh…all right…" the squirrel said, quickly jumping to his feet. As much as he did not trust the otter or the ferret, the wildcat just plain terrified him.

            "What's the matter squirrel?" The wildcat asked with a lazy tone and a wicked grin as he began cooking the skinned fox meat, "Don't want a piece of your enemies?"

            "It's only poetic justice, ya know." The otter remarked, "They ate away at your life, you eat away at their flesh."

            "Aw, come on Red, you're gonna make it vomit." The ferret complained, glancing at the squirrel who was feeling about ready to submit his meal to the dry grass. "Come on, mate, it's time to get this lovely layer of…stuff…off your fur." The ferret said, grabbing the squirrel's arm and dragging him along. 

            "We'll be back later, Dark. Don't forget about the other fox." The otter said as she moved to rejoin the other two.

            "Never fear. I don't forget things like that." The wildcat said with another of his sadistic grins.

            "I bet you don't." the otter remarked darkly over her shoulder just as she caught up with the ferret and the squirrel as they ventured into the forest surrounding the clearing

            "So, squirrelly, how do you like Dark?" the ferret questioned, finally letting go of the squirrel's arm.

            "I think he's a demon." The squirrel replied truthfully, glancing skeptically at the otter who was sniffing the air like she was sniffing out food.

            The ferret laughed, "More poetic than that, actually. He's the exiled prince of the Warheart family venturing through this great world of ours with a disturbed otter and a useless ferret as sidekicks."

            "Useless?" the squirrel asked, able to ignore the name Warheart for now.

            "Just being humble. I'm actually strikingly handsome and possess enough brilliance to get us out of any scrape." The ferret remarked with a grin.

            "That _you_ always get us into." The otter observed darkly and suddenly turned to the right. Without a single question, the ferret followed, and the squirrel, with nothing better to do at the moment, turned with them.

            "Not true. Who got us into that fight with all those mice, hmm?" the ferret demanded.

            "They were shrews, you idiot. And that all started when they hit me back." The otter snapped.

            "Who _are_ you?" the squirrel burst out suddenly, unable to keep the question back any longer.

            "Well, _I'm_ Fatefiend, and _that's_ Redsplash." The ferret said, pointing at himself first and then waving a paw at the otter who had changed directions once again. "Who are _you_?"

            The squirrel blushed a bit, "Um…I don't have a name." He said.

            "So make one up." The otter remarked distractedly. "I made my new one up, and Fate's working on a last name."

            "You don't have a last name?" the squirrel asked Fatefiend, the ferret.

            "Well, I suppose you can say that I do. I mean, my _mother_ did, but my father doesn't have a name, and he doesn't want one. Just walks around, orderin' beasts about, and they're just like 'Yes, Nameless One' or 'Go to-"

            The squirrel jumped away, "You're the _Nameless One's spawn_?" he shouted.

            "Well, spawn's a rather hurtful word. I prefer 'son.'" Fatefiend said, actually sounding a bit hurt.

            "The **_Nameless One's_**_ son_?" The squirrel practically screamed.

            "What? You thought Darkclaw was the only exiled prince in our company?" Fatefiend asked, blinking slowly at him. "Exiled loyalty travels in packs, ya know. Red here might even by royalty, but she won't talk about her past. Has got to be all dark and brooding and violent all the time, so while me and Dark are talking about the good old days executing underlings, Red just sits there and glares at us."

            "As much as I love gossip, Fate," Redsplash said darkly, "I prefer when it's not about me." 

            "You liar." The ferret said with a roll of his eyes, "You _love_ being talked about. It's why you've gotta tell every creature we meet along the road your name and see if you're reputation's traveled this far yet."

            "You just wait. One of these days I'll be infamous." The otter swore.

            "Yes, and all your little species'll take it upon themselves to attempt to kill me an' Dark, kidnap you, and try to figure out which one of us brainwashed you. Never knowing, that _you're_ the bad influence on _us_, but do _we_ ever get to be kidnapped? I don't think so." The ferret said, sounding disgruntled.

            "I can't help it if I was born an otter, Fate. Destiny and all." the otter said.

            "Right." Fatefiend muttered darkly.

            Suddenly Redsplash, in the middle of taking another sharp corner, tripped over a root. She nearly went sprawling, but managed to regain control just before tipping over by grabbing onto Fatefiend's tunic and shoving him down instead. Fatefiend, who landed flat on his face in the mud, stayed there for several seconds as if unable to get up. When he finally did, his face was smeared with mud and various other things that belonged on the forest floor, and should have stayed there. With an expression filled with hate and irritation, he crossed his arms over his chest and glared at Redsplash.

            "So, heh, squirrel, have ya come up with a name yet?" Redsplash asked, attempting without any measurable success to keep the laughter out of her voice, as she kept her green eyes locked on the ferret.

            "Huh? Oh, _sure_." The squirrel said, his voice incredibly sarcastic as he searched for a word. "Root." He announced, remembering what had just caused the previous fiasco. 

            "Well, that's an idiotic name." Redsplash said, glancing at him, "Why not Rinak or Renist..or…_something_?" the otter demanded, losing her momentum halfway through and then regaining it on the last word.

            "Uh, because _those_ two choices sound like sneezes, or maybe some last muffled scream of a choking duck." Fatefiend snapped. "I think Root's fine, I mean, he's obviously no intellectual wonder. Why should he have a name he can't even spell?"

            The squirrel rolled his eyes, "Look, I wasn't serious-" he started.

            "No, it's fine." Fatefiend assured him, "I'm sure Redsplash over here will realize someday that her name isn't that much of a masterpiece. I mean, just think about it. Red. Splash. Whoa. I bet that took entire _seconds_ of deep thought."

            The otter just glanced at him, obviously annoyed. "You're dirty, Fate. Go take a bath." She ordered.

            "In what, you idiot? The _mud_?" Fatefiend returned.

            "Where there's mud, there's water, ferret, and we've just found it." Redsplash said and jumped forward, shoving the ferret back. With a scream that made the squirrel wince, he flew backwards, and his scream ended with a gigantic splash that signaled that the otter was right. There _was_ water nearby.

            Redsplash stood there, smiling smugly, while the squirrel just gaped at her. Finally, nearly a minute later, there came a voice full of injured pride and frustration, "Red." Fatefiend said, "I think I really hate you right now."

            "I think you hate me all the time." Redsplash responded and walked forward, pushing aside the bushes lining the creek, and then stepped right into the water. "Very shallow." She observed.

            "Yes. Remind you of anyone?" Fatefiend demanded venomously, glaring at her.

            "Not really. No." Redsplash said, and turned to look at the squirrel. "You. Squirrel. Root."

            "Uh…yes?" the squirrel responded slowly.

            "Are you planning to just stand there?" she demanded.

            "If I go into that creek, I'm afraid one of you will try to drown me." The squirrel responded. "And stop calling me Root."

            "It's you name, you idiot. And we won't try to drown you, though it could be an unfortunate coincidence." The otter responded with that wide evil grin of hers.

            "Look, mate, she's not gonna drown you. She's lazy." Fatefiend remarked with an eye roll.

            "I prefer trees to creeks, I really do." The squirrel responded uneasily, glancing back and forth between the two of them.

            "Oh, please," Redsplash muttered, "If I climb a tree, will _you_ go get that lovely layer of grease off your fur? You really, really stink." 

            "You climb _trees_?" the squirrel demanded.

            "She's got this thing about being the opposite of what an otter's supposed to be. If you ask me it's gotta link back to some traumatic incident in that past of hers that she refuses to mention." The ferret revealed his opinion in a moody tone as he climbed out of the creek and began trying, with very limited success, to wring the water out of his tunic while still wearing it.

            "Oh. I see." The squirrel did not see. In fact, he had no idea whatsoever was going on in the mind of the she-otter, but he was pretty much certain he wanted to pluck all his fur out and go about bald more than he wanted to take a peek into _her _brain.

            She seemed to realize what he was thinking and smiled a feigned-innocent smile as she jumped out of the water and scampered easily up the nearest tree. Due to the way it had grown, and the pressure from the other trees near the bank, it went nearly straight up about twice the squirrel's height, and then flattened out and grew out over the stream. The otter perched on one of the thinnest branches, kicking her foot paws and staring down at the creek that ran along below her. 

            "No, go into the stream, chipmunk." The otter said airily with a kick of her left foot paw towards the stream, and an arrogant gesture of her right hand.

            "_Chipmunk_?" the squirrel screeched, very gravely insulted, "_What_ did you call me?"

            "Ignore her." The ferret suggested. "She's only trying to bait you. She calls _me_ a weasel all the time. Doesn't bother me."

            "But I'm _not_ a _chipmunk_!" the squirrel shouted. 

He had met a chipmunk once, and the idiotic thing had nearly driven him insane with it's constant blinking, tail twitching, and attempts at speech. It had been rather stupid, but must have been able to understand that all the words coming out of the squirrel's mouth were pretty much insults, because it not only glared at him, but it chunked a nut at him. The squirrel had lived with the bump on his head from that unjustified attack for several long days.

            "I somehow doubt she cares about that half as much as you do." Came the ferret's ironic reply as he finally gave up trying to dry the tunic and gave a heavy sigh, sending a look of reproach up at the grinning otter.

            "Me too." The otter agreed. "Now, in the water with you. You promised."

            "I-I did _not_!" Objected the squirrel, more shocked than actually irritated. As far as he could tell, these creatures were dangerous only because the things they did, they did without thinking about the possible consequences. They reminded the squirrel of children, barely able to understand right and wrong and doubting that they mattered in the first place. The otter, especially, seemed as if she didn't care about morality. The ferret, at least, seemed to realize it existed. They were harmless in an odd way, and the squirrel was sure he could stand them for more than around a day or so. Much more time spent with those two after that, and he would probably go insane with their strange way of thinking.

            It was, again, the wildcat he did not trust. Something about the way the Warheart cat's eyes followed the squirrel around, with a lazy threat hanging from his very posture, made the squirrel want to climb up the tallest tree in the world and hide there until the cat was safely locked behind the Dark Forest's Gates. He hated the way the wildcat seemed to treat his two companions with the kind of indifference only one completely at ease could use. Anyone at ease around these two was either way too powerful for the good of all other beasts, or completely insane. The squirrel was not sure what was more frightening than the prospect of a completely mad wildcat, but he knew better than to try thinking something up.

             "-_go_ already?" The otter sounded irritated as she burst through the squirrel's thoughts.

            "Fine. I'll go. Just stop complaining." The squirrel responded grumpily as he stepped into the creek.

            It was cold. Colder than he had thought it would be, but it was not cold enough to be uncomfortable. In fact, it was more refreshing than anything else. He walked unsteadily out to the center of the creek and sank unto his knees, craning his neck back to keep his head above water. He did not like the feeling of the water moving past quickly, urging him along. It was like the creek was trying to make him go with it, trying to control what he did. The squirrel had had enough of being controlled long ago. Still, as long as he did not have to stay like this long, it was kind of nice in a way.

            He sighed and leaned back, slowly settling under the surface. He marveled at the strange kind of ominous peace there was under this creek's surface, before hearing, or actually feeling, something heavy enter the water with him. He twisted, opening one eye slightly, to see the otter staring at him, upside down. She grabbed him by the shoulder and pulled him back up the surface.

            "No testing our lungs in this creek, all right?" the otter said, sounding a bit breathless and aggravated.

            "I was only under the surface for a few seconds." The squirrel replied reproachfully.

            "Red, get him out quick. It's lookin' pretty interested in what you're doin'." Fatefiend said, sounding as irate as the otter, if not more. 

            "Come on." the otter said and tugged at his arm, "Get to shore quick. We've attracted some unwanted company."

            "We've done what now?" the squirrel asked and glanced upriver, confused by this strange behavior. A very large fish was swimming towards them idly, almost as if it was just bored and searching for something to entertain it. Though he was not sure what exactly the fish deemed as entertainment, the squirrel knew better than to stick around to find out. With wild, waving movements that probably hindered him about as much as they helped him, the squirrel shot towards the shore in bounding, less-than-graceful leaps, that sent him, finally, flying out of the water and nearly ramming straight into the tree. The otter and the ferret laughed uproariously at the squirrel's behavior, even while Fatefiend leaned down to help pull Redsplash out of the stream.

            "What are you two laughing at? That thing could've _killed_ me!" The squirrel said, profoundly offended by their loud and openly mocking amusement and vaguely embarrassed that he had panicked while the two other beasts had remained completely calm.

            "Maybe if you held still and let it nibble at you for a couple seasons." Redsplash remarked sarcastically, still giggling on and off, as she shook herself violently, sending water droplets flying all over Fatefiend who had just managed to get relatively dry. He sent Redsplash a disapproving look, apparently drained of all amusement by this new crime, and shook his head, mouth drawing into a frown.

            "It was _huge_!" The squirrel insisted, throwing his paws out to emphasize how big it was, at least in his imagination, eyes still wide and heart still racing.

            "Oh, please, mate," the otter said in a slightly patronizing, but somewhat friendly tone as she threw a paw around the squirrel's shoulders and began directing him back in the vague direction of the wildcat, "You'll see fish at least ten times that big when you travel with us. We're going to Salamandastron, you know. You'll love it."

            "Fish get _bigger_ than that?" The squirrel demanded in a quietly awed voice and then the meanings of the rest of the otter's words sunk in, "Wait, I'm going _with_ you three?"

            "Of course. Do you have anywhere else you were planning on going?" Redsplash asked, with the type of tone that said she really did not care if he did.

            "Get away, Root, while you can. She'll get you trapped so you can't leave. She's evil and manipulating, she is." Fatefiend muttered darkly as he plodded along behind them, again trying to wring water out of his tunic.

            "Oh, just ignore that one. He's just moping." Redsplash said, sending the ferret an aggravated look over the squirrel's shoulder.

            "I am _not_ moping." Fatefiend snapped, "You make fun of me, you throw me into creeks, you drench me with water, you try to _kill_ me, and you expect me to jump for joy when some poor soul is about to fall into the same trap I did? I don't think so you bloody, ignorant, smelly pig of an otter!"

            "See, we're great to travel with. Very close knit and all." Redsplash said, amazingly managing to look and sound sincere as she lied through her mostly white teeth.

            "Uh…all right…" the squirrel said, agreeing reluctantly, though he had no idea to what.

            "Great!" Redsplash said, "Now, how about another batch of that stew of yours?" she suggested with that same evil grin of hers back on her face.

            Wondering blearily if he had any choice at all, he nodded. He'd make some more food and then get some sleep. He had no idea what was going on in his life, or who these strange creatures were, but he was pretty much certain he preferred their company over the foxes who were now dead and being devoured by a sadistic wildcat. Following the other two as they bickered pettily back and forth, the squirrel shook his head from side to side nearly constantly, attempting, it seemed, to shake the other three out of his mind because, currently, they seemed to be making a mess out of it.


	2. Chapter Two

((New chapter, new problems. Hey, I need suggestions for a Badger Lord name. And maybe some hare's names too. Not good with names, you see. So any badger or hare names will be appreciated.

This chapter might not be as good as it _could_ be, because I was kind of in a rush to get this chapter up before I leave for Florida (going to Disney World for Spring Break.) I figured if I didn't get the chapter up before I left, there would be no hope for it to appear until somewhere around the last week of March. Still, I like this chapter, which is rare because I normally don't like what I write when it's fan fiction.

Anyway, I'm not going to start writing the next chapter until I get around three reviews and I'm probably not going to post it until I get around…hmmm…four or five. Hey, I don't like it when people won't post until you review much either, but I like feedback, probably more than is good for me.

Goodbye for now, I'm leaving Texas in a couple days, and, if I'm not skewered by some rabid costume-wearing freak or if my plane does not crash, I'll be back. If I don't post for more than three months, than those rabid costume-wearing freaks

in mouse costumes got me. You'll have to come up with your _own_ ending.))

Root had avoided Darkclaw for two days, or at least had avoided being alone with the wildcat. Despite the otter's assurances that Darkclaw only liked food that could "fight back properly," Root did not trust him. Glittering green eyes followed the squirrel whenever he looked over his shoulder. The fur on the back of his neck stood up constantly, and twice the squirrel had been devoured in his dreams, and each time he had awoken to find Darkclaw absent from the small campfires they built. He did not know if the wildcat slept, and had never seen him eat more than a mouthful. It was as if the wildcat was immortal, and required no sleep and no food.

So, Root had avoided with all his minute power the circumstance he currently found himself in. As soon as they had found a place to stop for the night, Darkclaw had left silently without bothering to give an explanation, and Redsplash and the ferret had left soon after, to go fishing, and had left Root by himself attempting to light a fire. Redsplash and the ferret had been gone for less than thirty seconds before Darkclaw emerged from the foliage and stood across the clearing in the heavy forest draped in fog, watching the squirrel who, in turn, stared back at him.

"Redsplash and Fatefiend went to go fishing." Root told him, hoping that, for some reason, the wildcat would care and go searching for them.

Darkclaw merely smirked as he prowled across the clearing and settled down directly across the small blaze from the nervous squirrel. "I know."

"How?" The question was not exactly planned. In fact, Root had _planned_ on turning tail and getting out of Darkclaw's presence as soon as possible, but the question was uncontainable.

"I was watching." Came the wildcat's amused response.

"Oh." This statement was a bit confusing. Why would the wildcat leave the three of them just to listen in on their conversations?

"I do it routinely." Darkclaw revealed, as if reading the squirrel's mind. "Old habit, I'm afraid. Back in my castle, there were some who would plot behind my backs. Beasts least expect you to overhear plots against you when you have just left them. Stupid of them, but useful to me."

"I…didn't ask." Root replied. And it was true, he hadn't. Not aloud anyway…

Darkclaw smirked at him, and, smugly inclined his sadistic face to the left, "You're afraid of me."

Root froze for a second, and then blinked. "What makes you think that?"

"It's simple." Darkclaw said with a long yawn, revealing all his pointed teeth and causing Root's heartbeat to triple it's speed. "You are prey, and I am a predator. I can smell fear, and you, little squirrel, reek of it."

"I'm not-"

Darkclaw continued as if anything Root might have to say was not at all important. "Which has made things a bit difficult, you understand, for me." His evil green eyes slide smoothly over towards Root. "Do you know why it has made things difficult?"

"I cannot imagine." Root responded truthfully, feeling the first bit of frustration sneak under the heavy blanket of fear in his mind.

"The otter and the ferret are not half as strong as they believe themselves to be. Not physically, and, by all means, not mentally, but they do possess something I require." Darkclaw laughed here, and his laugh was more damning than amused. "By some miracle of fate, the two most sought-after creatures in the west have wandered freely into my presence, or at least, have stayed there of their own free will."

"Sought-after? _Those_ two?" Root could not imagine anyone being crazy enough to enjoy spending their time with the otter and the ferret, not enough to actively seek them out.

"Yes, ironic isn't it? But Fatefiend is the missing son of the most powerful tyrant of our times. The Nameless One is threatening dozens of places and realms around the world, and the only way that these places can get the Nameless One to call his armies back is to give them one of the two things he is searching for: his son." Darkclaw smirked at this, shaking his head. "Now, Redsplash, she's even more important than the ferret. The Nameless One wants his son back so that he can kill him, but Fatefiend holds no additional value. Redsplash, though, stole something from the Nameless One and for _that_ he is willing to give up raiding and killing forever. No one knows what it is, and Redsplash does not know that I know why the Nameless One searches for her."

"I could tell her." Root threatened.

"You could, but there would be no point in it." Darkclaw replied with a smile. "If she finds out _you_ know, then she will abandon us both. And, believe me squirrel, if it weren't for the fact that those two are so valuable, I would have ripped you apart long before now. You'll stay alive, though, as long as Redsplash and Fatefiend _want_ you to. Amazing, isn't it, the power that they do not know they have?"

"Yes…" Root agreed slowly. "So the Nameless One wants them both?"

"Yes, but the Nameless One isn't the only one searching for Redsplash. There was another…an otter the exact opposite of our beloved Redsplash. He is a hero, and he was searching for her once…but I have heard no news of him since last season. He has, apparently, disappeared or died, but he had friends. They still search for her, as do numerous others with minor reasons and minor power. She has an amazing amount of power, the otter, but she cannot use it herself. Only others can use it, and that, perhaps, is the most ironic thing about the entire situation."

"So, once it's the most favorable time for you, you're just going to betray those two?" Root demanded, infuriated by this, though he did not exactly know why. He should have expected it. Darkclaw was a _Warheart_ after all.

Darkclaw paused at this, and frowned. "No, squirrel. You misunderstand my intentions." He seemed, if anything, a bit shocked by this. "I would no more willingly betray those two than I would chop off my own paw. But if it came down to their lives or mine, then, yes, I would betray them. But I am not searching for anything currently, and do not need whatever those two lives could get me. Besides, I…" Darkclaw suddenly smirked and leaned slightly towards the squirrel, "Would you like to know a secret, squirrel?"

"Is it the type of secret that could get me killed?" Root asked hesitantly, fighting back his insatiable curiosity for a moment.

"Is there any other kind of secret?" Darkclaw responded, his smirk revealing even more of his teeth.

Root winced and then, feeling regret already, asked the question: "What is the secret, then?"

"The two of them are amusing enough for me to want to keep around, _and_ they are leading me straight towards the one impressive goal I have not yet accomplished. Do you know what that goal is?"

"No…" Root admitted.

Darkclaw revealed every single one of his fangs in a wide grin as he replied. "I have killed a wolf, and I have killed a mother badger and her two cubs. But never have I killed a fully grown male badger."

Root gaped at him, "You're…you're going to _kill_ the badger lord?"

"I might try, once the ferret and the otter are someplace where they cannot interfere or be harmed. The problem with badgers is that they always manage to take somebeast with them when the die…if there are any others around to be killed."

"Who's gonna be killed?" Fatefiend demanded, appearing like a ghost through the heavy fog.

"Well, the fish've already _been_ killed, if that counts." Redsplash remarked cheerfully as she, too, strode from the forest, though she carried with her several fish.

"I'm surprised you two managed to find a decent place to fish." Root said, looking quickly away from the wildcat who still sat smirking at him.

"Oh, there had to be a stream along here somewhere. Wherever there are trees, there is water." Fatefiend replied cheerfully. "And, besides, Red over there can sniff out water like I can food. It's a pretty useful skill if you ask me."

"He didn't." Redsplash responded roughly as she settled herself by the fire and began cooking the fish. Although Redsplash's cooking skill were normally ranked up there with only the worst cooks in the world, Root had been assured that she worked wonders with fish. Which was probably the only reason why Fatefiend had let her touch the food at all.

Darkclaw did not speak to Root again that night, and barely said more than a single word sentences to Redsplash and Fatefiend. If the two noticed his terseness, they did not speak of it. Instead they spent hours telling jokes about and to Root, who only responded by not responding at all. Redsplash, too, became introspective and aloof as soon as the food was prepared, and, eventually, Fatefiend too stopped talking, and the evening finished in completely silence.

It was dark and it was moving. Root knew he was dreaming, but that did not make it any less frightening. He was in that blankness again…that place in his mind where his memories _should_ have been. Where his past, his whole _life_ was supposed to be…but was not. All he could remember from his past was being in a cold, dark, rainy place and screaming over and over, but never making an audible sound. This place always made him feel drained, weak…oppressed and drowning. Fear and hatred existed in raw forms in their freakish place, and Root hated them with a passion that was mingled so freely with fear it was sickening to him now, seasons later.

He reached out a paw, knowing he might has well just get this dream over with, and touched the moving, squirming, wall beside him. Whatever lived on that wall, or, perhaps, the wall _itself_ was alive, he had never been able to find out. Without light he could not see, and there was no light where this dream took place. Still, he stumbled forward several steps, never able to understand why his legs moved as if broken, or why his left paw was slashed to tatters.

Pain in his ribs reminded him of the way his lungs always burned uselessly in this dream. Nightmare. Reality. Whichever. Suddenly, and against everything Root knew was supposed to happen, a light flared to life. He froze and did not have the slightest inkling what to do. A _light_? In _the dream_? What kind of blasphemy _was_ this?

"Well, mate, gotten yourself into quite a fix now, haven't you?" Called a voice, full of concern, near-amusement, and slight impatience. Before, in the dream, there was no sound, but once the voice carried to his ears he could _hear_.

There was a steady dripping noise that came from everywhere, and his tortured breathing was insanely loud…and…some tortured creature was crying. Not little sniffles, but huge, tortured cries that ripped at Roots conscience. Someone was lost, alone, and, from the sound of it, dying. And there was light. And sound. And…and…

"_Root_!" No one called him by his new name in _the_ dream. He must be waking up.

And, yes, he was awake and gasping, looking up into the exasperated face of Fatefiend. "Mate, would you _stop_ screaming and find some _happy_ dream?" The ferret demanded incredulously.

"Really. I was right in the middle of poking out the Nameless One's eyes and _you_ woke me up." Came Redsplash's voice, especially whiny now that she hadn't gotten to kill anyone in her dreams.

"Sorry…" Root said, his tone breathless and hoarse. Obviously he _had_ been screaming in his dreams. More embarrassed than anything else, Root rolled onto his side, curled into a ball, and closed his eyes. Redsplash snorted and was momentarily quiet. Fatefiend, though, was still within paw's reach of him, apparently staring down at him.

"You know," Fatefiend said quietly, "If your dreams are that bad, perhaps it's your mind trying to tell you something."

"Stop talking stupid and go to sleep." Came Redsplash's grumpy voice.

Fatefiend snapped something rather rude back, and Redsplash threatened him with a death that would take seasons to finish. Fatefiend responded with a gesture, and Redsplash retaliated, but both were too tired to do anything else. Both the otter and the ferret were asleep and snoring uproariously far before Root even closed his eyes for longer than a blink again.

Root had absolutely no idea what he had gotten himself into, but he knew it was unpleasant. He watched, his jaw hanging open, as the wildcat held the otter, by her neck, high up in the air and gave her several good, violent shakes. The squirrel stepped forward, unsure what he was planning on doing but upset by the treatment of the otter, but was stopped by the ferret's paw. Fatefiend grabbed hold of Root's ratty tunic and dragged him back, shaking his head back and forth frantically. Darkclaw gave a small hiss of irritation as the otter's fangs dug into his paw and her hind paws slammed against his chest and scrambled furiously, leaving tiny scratch marks from her claws through his shirt and angry red lines across his broad chest and vulnerable stomach.

"They fight like this all the time, mate. Don't bother 'em. It's a bonding ritual _I_ think." Fatefiend remarked to the astounded Root.

It was early in the morning, barely an hour or two after sunrise, and Root had awoken from a light and dreamless sleep, tired, surprised to find the two of them scuffling. Obviously, the wildcat was winning, but the Warheart spawn obviously did not appreciate the long rips in his tunic that the otter's claws had given him. In fact, he seemed more irritated by his ruined clothing than anything else as he threw the otter down on the ground and stalked away with a short roar of frustration, his tail whipping around in short, agitated, strikes as if slashing at the otter.

Redsplash lay in the dirt for a few seconds and then feebly pushed herself up onto her elbows, "Come back, you coward!" she yelled after the fuming prince, her voice breathless and choked, "I was _winning_!"

"You were n-" Root started as he leaned down and pulled her to her feet. His retort was cruelly cut off by Fatefiend's elbow slamming into Roots ribs.

"We let her believe what she _wants_ to, squirrel." The ferret hissed quietly as he too pulled the otter to her feet.

The tall otter swayed dangerously for a second as if she were about to tip over, obviously disoriented. "Bloody coward," she muttered darkly, "Runnin' off when I was _winning_."

Root shook his head and sighed, "You weren't winning, Redsplash." He told her truthfully. "I thought he was killing you."

"_What_?" Redsplash screeched indignantly, nearly falling over with the force of her yell. "I was _not_ losing! Everything was going _precisely _as I planned!"

"You're gonna have to face facts, Red. You're nothin' without that bloodwrath of yours." Fatefiend piped up, and when Redsplash turned her furious gaze on him, he pointed at Root as if the squirrel had somehow _made_ him say it.

"Bloodwrath?" Root inquired, curious.

"Red goes completely crazy every now and then. Her eyes go red and everything. It's great to watch, because the stronger she gets the stupider she gets and-" Fatefiend started to informed him in a cheerful tone. However, when he saw Redsplash's glare he wilted slowly and hunched his shoulders forward, "Yes, uh, I'll just go, and…bother Darkclaw now…" He muttered darkly.

"That's the first good idea you've come up with all season." Redsplash snapped at him as he sulked off in the direction the wildcat had left in. She turned her leaf green eyes back on the squirrel and frowned at him, "You know, I like my breakfast in the _morning_." She informed him grumpily.

Root, who had detected that respect only came from violence and fighting, physical or verbal, in this group, crossed his arms over his chest and returned her glare, "Oh, _do_ you? Well, then you'd better get cooking. Morning won't last much longer."

"_You_ were supposed to be our cook! It's why we saved you!" Redsplash bellowed at him, obviously not liking the fact that the squirrel was standing up to her.

"I didn't _ask you to_!" Root shouted back.

"You were _starving_! We _saved_ you! You _owe_ us!" Redsplash was waving her arms in anger now, although she wasn't hitting _him_, she seemed to be striking at phantom squirrels that surrounded her.

"'Us?'" Root inquired, "You're a group now, are you? Is _that_ why you three are always fighting? Because you're have just such a _great_ friendship?"

"Of _course_! How many good friends do you know that don't fight?" Redsplash asked, still waving her arms around.

Root was stupefied by this question of hers. Friends fought, it was true, but they did not hold each other above the ground and shake them by their necks. "Your life **_is not healthy_**!" he finally settled on saying, quite loudly actually.

Redsplash stared at him, blinking three times before finally saying, in this completely shocked tone, "Of course it isn't!"

Root stifled a scream, "You're _hopeless_." He informed her, not sure what else he could say.

"**_You're_** _ugly_!" Redsplash bellowed back.

"Am _not_!"

"Are _too_!"

"Am _not_!"

"_Are_ _too_!"

"Damn it! Just _stop talking unless you have something smart to say_!" Root's temper, though very slow to actually catch, exploded like wildfire once lit. There was no way he would calm down for a while now. He paced in furious lines, glaring so strongly at the otter that she seemed, for the moment, cowed. In fact it did not look like she would be talking for a while.

"You're so _stupid_!" Root snapped, deciding that if the otter wasn't going to talk he might as well, and stopped pacing because he was making himself dizzy. "You're so afraid of looking like you don't have control that you don't notice _everything you do_ is idiotic! That _cat_ could rip you apart in a second if he wanted too. That's _nature_, otter! You can't fight _nature_! If nature says something can kill you, then it can and there is _nothing you can do_ to fight that! You're lucky that wildcat needs you alive, or he would have _devoured_ you by now!"

"I really don't-" The otter started half-heartedly, still, obviously, shocked by Root's continuous outburst.

"_No one _here thinks you're a coward! Except for maybe the wildcat, but he's completely insane anyway, so he doesn't count! No one _sane_ thinks you're a coward so you _don't_ have to go running around trying to _prove_ it all the time! Personally, _I_ think you're out to prove something because of some weakness you had as a cub that cost you something you'd rather have kept, but despite being stupid and headstrong, I doubt you have any other faults, so _stop_ **_worrying_** about it!"

Redsplash rocked back on her heels, her eyes so wide it was becoming slowly apparent that not many had ever yelled at her like this. She got over her shock easily, though, and leaned forward, poking the squirrel in the chest with her right paw. "Don't you _dare_ tell me to '_stop worrying'_ about **_anything_**! You have _no idea_ what I have to '_worry'_ about and _you're the stupid one_! We _all_ know you're terrified of Darkclaw! If you were smart, you'd see he's been playing with your mind since you met him! He's _trying_ to scare you, and _you're_ letting it work!"

"I'm _afraid_ of him because I'm _smart_! If he wanted me dead, I'd _die_! Fear is _good for you_! Without it you'd be just another _brainless, stupid, violence-craving **idiot**_! And I'd rather not be _just like you_!" Root poked her back, his own paw a fist as if slammed against the fur right beneath her collarbone.

"_You can just **die**_!" Redsplash roared and lunged towards him, bowling him completely over. But Root, instinctively, latched unto her arm and brought her, protesting loudly, down with him.

They rolled about on the ground, each trying, it seemed, to gouge the other's eyes out, or snap the other's neck, or just break a couple ribs here and there. Finally, Redsplash's knee slammed into Root's stomach and Root lay, gasping, on the ground while Redsplash climbed to her feet. She made a peculiar sound, like she was about to spit on him, and Root swung out his left leg, and it collided with Redsplash's knees. The otter went flying, and landed face-first in the dirt to Root's left. Both of them stayed where they were, winded, for an obscenely long amount of time, about twice as long as the actual fight took.

"I won." Redsplash finally announced. Root rolled onto one of his elbows and raised one eyebrow, sending her a look that said very clearly 'you just don't know when to stop talking, do you?'

"Excuse me?" He managed after a few seconds, still a bit winded from the blow to his stomach.

"You fell down first. I won." Redsplash clarified stubbornly, as she pushed herself up into a sitting position. Only then did she seem to realize that Root had split her lip in some accidentally accurate punch. Sending him a glare of reproach she lifted a paw to the injured lip and seemed to be testing how bad the wound was.

"Some warrior _you_ are." Root remarked as he, too, sat up and began feeling his ribs to see if any of them had been seriously injured. "Having to come up with excuses as to why you won."

Redsplash frowned at him. "Squirrel," she said slowly, "I have killed more beasts than you have probably seen in your life."

Now, this probably wasn't true, but she had undoubtedly killed more creatures than he _remembered _seeing in his life. "Where's the proof?" he demanded.

"Proof? _Proof_?" She demanded, sounding incredulous. Suddenly she shoved her arm directly under his nose and pointed to a nasty looking gash that ran at least two inches from her shoulder towards her elbow. It was wide and winding and looked like it had hurt along. "Got that from one of the spikes on the Nameless One's walls when I was helping some mouse escape. The guards surprised us and I went over the wall. Managed to grab hold of one of the spikes to keep from falling to my death, but on the way down one of 'em slit open my arm. I hung there until sunrise, and then lost my grip and fell. I imagine I had a pretty nasty landing, because I got a concussion and a couple broken ribs, too, but by the time I woke up, this little scar was already healed."

Root was about to say something when she gestured at the space right above the ankle of her right foot. "Nearly lost this foot to a pike when I was chunked I into a lake. A rat ripped open my stomach with a skinning knife once, and I've been shot in my side with an arrow. My legs have been broken, and I've been cut 'bout a hundred times by the Nameless One's dangers. I have plenty of _proof_, squirrel. What I _don't_ have is a reason this all had to happen to me. Or revenge on those who did it to me in the first place."

"Well, I don't see any reason to hurt you either, Red. What with your charming personality and all." Root replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

She stared at him for a second and then burst into laughter. "You remind me of L-" she paused, and winced, her face paling. Redsplash shook her head and finished the sentence uncomfortably. "Someone…you remind me of someone."

Root tilted his head to the side, wondering who, exactly, had managed to survive Redsplash's presence that was like him. "Who?" he asked, not caring overly much if she _didn't_ want to talk about.

"No one you'd know." She wasn't looking at him anymore, but _past_ him, her eyes not really focused on anything and her tone a bit listless.

"How do you know that?" Root replied. Of course, the only beasts he remembered were Redsplash, Darkclaw, Fatefiend, and the two foxes. Other than that, his mind was a blank.

"Because, you're a squirrel. He died before he ever met a squirrel." Redsplash responded bitterly, stood up, and walked away, leaving Root to himself.

"Oooh…aaaahh…am I supposed to be impressed?" Root muttered to himself. "Stupid dramatic otter, can't even answer my questions…pity the poor beast that never got to meet a _squirrel_." He continued to mummer to himself as he began cooking food for himself and, just because he was in a bad mood, making sure he did not make enough for any of the others.

Redsplash was wandering through the forest, thinking deeply about parts of her past that she normally avoided thinking about at all. She was slowly daggering herself up out of the hole her mind had fallen in, and trying to pay more attention to the forest around her so she could get back to where the others were. Where Root, the causer of all this deep-thinking, was located. But the forest was confusing, and it was better to stay in her own thoughts than face reality. The forest sounded oddly, strange sounds emitting from the core of the forest that she was currently trampling on through.

For instance, she kept hearing her name. "Redsplash…" There it went again. That voice calling her name. She stopped where she was and scowled at the nearest bush. She hated forests. Too enclosed. It was open water she liked.

"Redsplaaash…." Redsplash grunted in annoyance and set off towards the voice, but tried, hopelessly, to block it out. Unless one of her idiotic companions was playing a trick on her, there was no one in this forest that knew her name.

"Redsplash!" the voice was stronger now, urgent. Recognition struck. Fatefiend.

"Fatefiend, what stupid prank are you playing?" she demanded loudly.

"No prank! No prank!" Fatefiend called back, sounding, surprisingly, a bit panicked.

"Give it up, ferret. She's not going to be any help." Darkclaw joined in the conversation, sounding too cynical even for his normal self.

"Like we have any other _choice_." Fatefiend responded. "Red, listen, I can see you. Take a couple steps to your right and then a bit forward." Redsplash did like he said, but was a bit frustrated by the whole thing. When she saw Fatefiend though, it all became clear.

Fatefiend was hanging, in a net, from a gigantic oak tree. Along with, it appeared, Darkclaw, although Darkclaw was in a different net and a different tree. Redsplash could not have stopped the laughter if she tried. It burst out of her and she doubled over, laughing so hard her ribs hurt. When she finally got control of herself the two of them were glaring rather angrily at her.

"All right, you two, just…stay there…for a second-" She stepped forward.

"No! _NO_!" Fatefiend bellowed, but it was too late. Redsplash stepped, laughing and relaxed, into the trap and, within seconds, was hanging from the same tree as Fatefiend, but in, obviously, yet another net.

"Well…" Redsplash said, as she stopped laughing abruptly and the two of them glared even more angrily at her. "Damn."

It was around midnight when Root began seriously believing the others had abandoned him. Before he had reassured himself with the fact that they had left all there food here and had, in an attempt at vengeance for them leaving him alone for so long, partaken of their food rations. Now, though, that the sun was down and some demonic owl kept hooting somewhere in the distance, Root was sure they had left him here. Which was, and Root had no trouble admitting this unlike _some_ might, completely frightening.

Here he was, truly all alone for the first time he could remember in his _life_, in a place he had never been, and without any idea as to how to get out of the forest at all. Added to that was the stupid owl, the threat that there could be _anything_ outside the light of his tiny fire, and the added bonus of being completely weaponless…not that he could wield a weapon _anyway_, but it would have been nice to have something sharp and pointy to make him feel better about being abandoned.

With a sigh more shudder than anything else, he stood up and grabbed his pack. He loaded as much of the other's food and objects into his pack as possible and even found a small dagger in Fatefiend's pack. Shoving the blade through his belt Root set off into the forest. Lacking any real interest, Root glanced at the forest floor and noted strange little imprints in the dirt. _Otter tracks_…his mind whispered and he frowned lightly wondering how, in the name of all that was good and non-abandoned, he had known _that_ little tidbit of information. But this had happened a times before, where he knew something he had not known he knew, and never, once, had this strange form of intuition been wrong. Not once in all his remembered life.

So, with a light shrug, Root decided to see if he knew how to _follow_ these tracks he recognized. Something told him he could follow them until he found the paws who had made them, but, still, Root followed. It wasn't that he was interested in finding Redsplash again, or that he was really _that_ interested in the tracks in the first place, but they gave him a direction to go in and that was more than anything else had so far. He tracked the otter with no real interest, but when the tracks were too hard to discern from the other tracks on the ground, Root was rather unpleasantly surprised to find that he could follow other clues as to where the otter had gone, without such visible signs as the tracks. He did not like possessing such a talent without being aware of it. It made him wander, as he wondered through the forest in vague search of the otter, what _other_ talents he might possess.

Around a quarter of an hour had gone by when Root heard the first few snippets of what sounded like a full-fledged shouting and screaming argument. The signature sign, Root knew, of Redsplash and her companions chattering cheerfully. It did not sound like they were engaged in an actual physical fight, though, so it probably wasn't a very serious fight. They might have been arguing over the over-all color of the sky, as they had mere days ago. With another deep sigh, Root started off in the direction of the arguing beasts.

"Oh, _sure_, Fatefiend! Next time I'll just _leave_ you two hanging!" Redsplash bellowed, her expression furious as she hurled her response at the ferret.

"_We can **only hope**_!" Fatefiend roared back, waving his fist at her in a threatening manner that did absolutely nothing for the conversation.

"Stop this." Darkclaw said suddenly, quietly. They did not listen.

"_You **asked** for help_!" Redsplash's voice was a full octave higher than normal as she tried to wave her fists back and swing the net closer to Fatefiend's in order to hit him at the same time. She made very limited success at both.

But she did give Fatefiend an idea. He grabbed hold of the rope net and used all his nearly considerable strength to hurl his net at Redsplash. He slammed into her and her entire net went hurtling backwards. She screeched in shock and then threw herself towards Fatefiend as the net started back towards his in its current ark. Fatefiend had time to widen his mouth and eyes before she slammed into him. They kept this pattern up for quite some time before a loud, terrifying sound ripped through the forest. It was a roar of anger and hate, of irritation and frustration, and it silenced Fatefiend and Redsplash whose nets continued slamming into each other and turning in rapid circles, but with no encouragement from them.

"Darkclaw! Don't _do_ that!" Fatefiend said, "Especially since we've been up here for hours and I had so much to drink at breakfast."

"Aw, is wittle bittle ferret gonna p-" Redsplash started, heavy on the baby-voice.

"Otter, if you have not noticed, your one chance of freedom has just arrived." Darkclaw announced, his tone both biting a lazy as he hung calming in his net, yawning loudly.

"What? _Where_?" Redsplash demanding, attempting to stop her net's wild spins so that she could spot this chance Darkclaw had mentioned.

"It's the _squirrel_!" Fatefiend announced. And, indeed, it was.

Root was watching the three of them from a safe distance away. For some reason, the nets and the location were striking a deep, instinctive fear inside his stomach, his heart, and deep within his mind. _Run…run…run…run…run…run…_whispered that voice endlessly in his mind and that intuition-like sense never gave bad advice. For the first time in his life Root was almost overwhelmed by the desire to save himself and sacrifice others. Never before had he felt such fear, not even in those nightmares that, he thought, were the very embodiments of fear. No. Never before in his life had he had to face down the deep, screaming wail that fear could become that was ripping at him, pleading, ordering, begging for him to leave and leave now. Before _they_ could get him. Before _they_ found him. Before _they_ cornered him and caught him. Before it was over. Before he had no chance to escape. Before _they_ captured and killed him.

But Redsplash and Fatefiend were staring at him, talking to him though he could not comprehend the words, asking him in varying forms to get them out. They wanted to be free and if they weren't freed _they_ would get them, and the two of them would die. Still, despite this, Root could not force himself forward. He stood, frozen and terrified and confused, while the otter and the ferret asked for freedom.

It was Darkclaw that convinced him to act. Darkclaw who intimidated and infuriated him. The wildcat that only let him live because he needed to use the other two. The wildcat looked at him, and in those pools of evil that were his eyes, there was understanding…understanding and apprehension. He knew. _He_ knew what might happen, and what danger they were all in. Even Root did not know why he was so afraid, only that he was. Darkclaw knew and Darkclaw was uneasy. The wildcat's claws were out, and the fur along his spine was half-raised. The wildcat placed his claws gently against the netting and Root understood the threat.

For some unexplainable reason, Root knew that if those nets were cut, it would call _them_ forward, and wildcat, squirrel, ferret, and otter would die. But it was more chance of survival than if the wildcat was kept in the nets. If he stayed in the nets, there was no chance. But if he cut free, he could fight. It was suicide, but it was _purposeful_ suicide, rather than needless. If the nets were cut, Darkclaw's death would be bloody and gory and impressive. If the ropes were kept whole his death would be cold and painful and entertainment. If the ropes were cut, Root would die.

So Root really had no choice but to attempt to free the others, even though he knew, deep down in the pit of his stomach where all his fears lived in a dark pit that held sway even over his mind, that he would not survive this situation no matter what choice he took.


	3. Chapter Three

((I'm sorry this took so long to get up, I was having a battle of wills with my characters that, unfortunately, _they_ won. I fought with trying to make the original plot work for a couple weeks, then refused to write on this at all out of spite, and then, _finally_, had to come up with a new plot for this chapter and change the rest of the plot to accommodate it. So, now, I do not like this chapter, and I'm not that thrilled with any of my characters right now, so if they seem to be acting a bit strange in this chapter, please just ignore it. I might have been subconsciously trying to make them look stupid or something.

I imagine this next chapter and the chapter after that will be very slow getting up, because I don't write quickly what I don't like, and, believe me, I'll hate the next couple of chapters. I'm not going to tell you what will happen, though, because that'll ruin the surprise.

Oh, yeah, warnings about this chapter…there pretty much are none, just mental anguish, physical strain, some weirdoes, and a little bit of Root's past. And, by the way, I have finally put a real bio up after about a year and three months, lol. And I didn't really edit this, so if you see any mistakes, tell me, ok? Thanks.))

It was driving him crazy, that nagging voice in the back of his mind pleading for him to run away, but he could not silence it or ignore it, so he just had to bear it. Root had decided to free the wildcat first, because, of the three of them, Darkclaw was the least likely to run off if _they_ arrived. The wildcat knew his only chance for survival was in the slight bit of clearing that he was currently hanging above. In the forest, the wildcat would be slaughtered before he could get seven paces south.

Not that Redsplash and Fatefiend were taking happily to this choice of Root's. In fact they were complaining, at the top of their lungs, about being left to hang while Root went about trying to free Darkclaw, and they were refusing to quiet. Root, trembling and terrified, was trying to ignore them, but they were making it difficult. The squirrel had scaled the tree the wildcat was being held from, and was searching for something. He didn't know what it was, exactly, that he was looking for, but knew he would recognize it if he found it.

"They've developed their trap. You'll have to cut the string." Darkclaw's tone was too close to sounding anxious for comfort. Even the otter and ferret quieted for a second, confused by both the tone and the message, before immediately beginning to ask questions.

Root didn't understand, but he _knew_ what Darkclaw was talking about. A strange feeling of anger, a hatred so deep and irritated that Root was momentarily paralyzed, struck him and, after perhaps a second or so, he found his paw shooting out and gripping a small, nearly invisible, string that was attached to the net Darkclaw hung from. He stared down at, realizing the trap. If that net were relieved of the weight of Darkclaw's body, then the string, which was tight, would become slack. Root followed the string up the tree, scurrying easily up the trunk. At the very last stable branch he found a strange contraption. It was shaped like a bell, but was built of what looked like bone…almost like a skull. Strange, though, Root had never seen anything that could possess bones that big, let alone a skull.

The string pulled the bell forward. If the string were cut, the bell would ring. _Bad_…

Root practically flew back down to Darkclaw. "There's a bell-" he started.

"I _know_ there's a bell, and so do you." Darkclaw snapped moodily. "You're just going to have to cut the string and then keep it from ringing."

"Someone tell me _something_!" Redsplash bellowed.

"How do I-" Root began.

"No, tell _me_! _Tell **me**_!" Fatefiend shouted.

"Cut-" Root continued.

"Don't tell him _anything_!" Redsplash shrieked.

"The rope without-" Root started again.

"_What's_ **_going on_**?" Fatefiend questioned at the top of his considerably powerful lungs. Unfortunately, Redsplash attempted to say something at the same time, and, soon, they were both yelling to be understood and neither of them was making any sense. The whisper for Root to flee became a screaming, unrelenting, forceful roar in Root's mind, driving out everything else. He tried to violently shake the deafening sounds out of his mind and Darkclaw roared, the first serious roar Root ever remembered hearing, and, once more, the roar in Root's mind grew even louder and he panicked.

"All right, Root, listen closely." Came Darkclaw's very irate voice. "If you do not let go of the tree limb and cut the rope so the bell doesn't ring, I will personally pry your eyes out of their sockets and _eat_ them."

"Dark, I don't think that's helping." Fatefiend berated the wildcat dryly.

Root had been clutching the tree limb next to the bell as if it were the only thing anchoring him to the living world. After Darkclaw's roar, the otter and the ferret had quieted for long enough for the wildcat to explain their predicament. They had been trying to get Root to let go of the tree for at least five minutes now, and the squirrel, eyes closed and jaw clenched, refused to even answer them. This was not helping Darkclaw's temper much, which, in turn, was not helping Fatefiend's anxiety or Redsplash's irritation.

"Squirrel!" Redsplash yelled suddenly, standing up, in a sense, in her net and jumping up and down. For a second Fatefiend did not understand _why_ Redsplash was jumping and then, as his net began to sway, he realized. She was shaking the tree, which didn't, when he thought about it, seem like a good idea. If she scared Root any more, it was likely the squirrel would go running off and never return. And if _that_ happened, they would all be killed, if Darkclaw were to be believed.

Of course, Fatefiend was the only one present that didn't think about what swaying the tree would do to the bell. Darkclaw shouted something unintelligible that sounded a great deal like a muddled death threat compressed into half a breath, and Root flew like a bolt of furry lightening to bell, which he hugged like a long lost best friend to keep it from ringing. Panting madly, the squirrel held onto the bell for several seconds after any threat of ringing had passed. Then he flew down the tree, without shaking it once, dropped to the ground, grabbed hold of Redsplash's net with one paw, and began shaking the other paw furiously as he bellowed at her.

"_Do you have a **death wish**_? _You're gonna get **us all killed**_! **_Stupid, arrogant, she-otter_**!" And with that he let go of the net, took in a very deep breath, and bellowed like a dying badger at the stunned Redsplash. It was a wordless, angry roar that caused Fatefiend to wonder if the squirrel was, in fact, completely insane. And not insane in the way he and Redsplash were, but in a very sick, very twisted way that made Fatefiend very nervous.

"You don't react well to stress, do you?" Redsplash questioned mildly as the squirrel finally silenced himself, her tone a bit meek.

"Poor dear." Fatefiend forced out half a second after Redsplash's sentence registered with his mind. Funny to the end, they were.

"Squirrel." Darkclaw's voice was calm, again, cold even.

Root, eyes amazingly wide, turned to look at him blankly. "What do you want?" He demanded, his tone almost sullen.

"If you do not wish to die, get up the tree and muffle the bell, because I am going to cut myself out of this net right now." And he meant it, because he lifted his sharp claws to the rope.

Root was obviously a very quick beast when he needed to be, because he was up the tree and muffling the bell before Darkclaw's claws even finished cutting through the rope. When the rope gave and the bell began to ring, Root reached inside and stopped it, feeling his left paw seem to shatter. Screaming, he reacted to the pain and jumped backwards, very nearly falling out of the tree. Certainly, if he had possessed an insane resistance to pain, the bell never would have tolled. As it was, he reacted like anyone but a masochist would have, and his scream rivaled the bell for pure volume. Darkclaw, who was free, was not happy.

In second, he freed Redsplash and Fatefiend and threw them violently in the direction of the setting sun they could barely glimpse through the trees. "**_Go_**!" The wildcat roared and the otter and ferret, amazingly, complied without a single complaint at being tossed. Root, crippled now that his left paw was hurting so badly he could barely think at all anymore, threw himself out of the tree, hoping that, for some reason, a fall from this height wouldn't cripple him anymore. Because, if it did, he wouldn't be able to walk and _they_ would get him.

For some strange reason, instead of letting him fall and likely break his neck, Darkclaw reached up into the air and caught hold of the squirrel. "Next time, try not to get maimed in the process of _failing_." The wildcat growled and set the squirrel down in the dirt before setting off after the otter and ferret, who, though they did not know where they were going, were setting a pretty breakneck pace. Letting a mewl of pain and a grunt of irritation pass his lips, Root staggered to his foot paws and doggedly started after them, holding his left paw to his chest.

Redsplash got perhaps a minute into her breath-stealing and energy-draining sprint when the dart hit her shoulder. Instinctively, she ripped it out, and a muted shout of pain ripped from her as the long needle-like dart was ripped out of her flesh. She stared at it as she ran, frowning in incomprehension. And then, the air was filled with them. They dug into her, one narrowly missing her right eye. The otter saw Fatefiend trip and fall, so full of the darts that he looked like some kind of mad porcupine. Darkclaw was roaring again, and, for a second, everything still seemed survivable.

And then hundreds, if not thousands, of gray-garbed beasts were surrounding them. There were so many that, abruptly, the forest-green was no longer visible. Everything was gray, and moving, and dangerous. Ferrets, badgers, otters, rats, and mice stared at them all with blank, but oddly accusatory, stares as they threw the darts at them, without ever blinking or seeming to aim. If they had been baring their teeth, or even laughing, Redsplash would have understood, but this…how could you fight something that wasn't even awake? How could you kill something that wasn't even alive?

Everything seemed to slow down to a strange crawl, and Redsplash had time to take it all in, to try to understand. Fatefiend was on his knees, trying desperately to pull out all the darts, with blood spurting out of him like he was some kind of freakish fountain. Darkclaw, littered with the tiny darts that couldn't seem to penetrate his heavy fur like they could Fatefiend's, gave a mighty shake and the tiny darts went flying like demonic bees. Root, eyes wide and teeth bared in what could only be called absolute terror, held his left paw to his chest protectively and ignored all the darts flying at him and those that had already embedded into his flesh.

The gray-garbed beasts were many, but they seemed to be running out of darts, at last. A whole group of them, scattered among the endless crowd, were standing there listless, as if they did not know what to do next. Blank eyes stared at the air in front of them as if waiting for it to tell them what to do. They were silent, too, never making a sound as they threw their darts. In fact, the only sounds were the screams and roars of Redsplash and her companions. It was a strange peace these beasts brought, but it was peace.

And then time was going fast again, and Darkclaw was roaring. He reached out with his gigantic paws and swiped at the darts in the air, bellowing at the top of his considerably powerful lungs. Fatefiend was receiving most of the darts, now, and it was strange that, after all he had gone through, it was this that looked the most like it was going to kill him. Coughing up blood and weakly pawing at the darts, he had fallen onto his back now and seemed to be trying to crawl towards a bush. Redsplash lunged towards the ferret, pushing him towards the bush so that it covered most of him and then placing herself in between the rest of the darts as she attempted to tug them all out of the ferret. Everything seemed to be glimmering oddly, and Redsplash realized the darts had some kind of poison on them.

It was, of all beasts, Root that saved them. Screaming that same insane scream of his again, he flew at the solid line of gray-garbed beasts and began to send them flying through the air with a strength that seemed to Herculean for a squirrel his size. The dart-wielders were confused, as if this had never happened, and stood surprising still with an intent look on their faces as if listening to something far away. And then they turned around, all at once and all as one, and ran away. Root, shaking violently from fear or an attempt to get rid of all the darts, stood with a mouse clutched in his paws, screaming at the empty-eyed creature as if he could kill it with a scream.

"Root." Darkclaw said, his tone distracted, lightly confused. The squirrel did not even quiet a bit. "**_Root_**!"

The squirrel grabbed one of the darts out of his own shoulder and stabbed it straight into the mouse's neck, before dropping the twitching and gasping beast on the ground and turning around. For a second he looked furious, almost like Redsplash had when the bloodwrath had taken over her mind, but then he blinked, and everything changed. Furious eyes turned blank and pleading, and, as if in shock, he turned to stare down at the now-dead mouse. He trembled and shook and whimpered, unable to believe what he had done. The others just stared at him in blank surprise as he denied, in tiny little mutters that could hardly be heard much less deciphered, that none of this was real.

Root wasn't a killer. He didn't want to kill anything. Killing was wrong. Killing was murder. Murder was a crime committed only by those who could deal with the guilt of killing something alive, of ending a future that could have held hope, and Root could not bear that kind of guilt. The squirrel did not know the mouse he had killed. It could have not been the mouse's fault that she was wearing gray and had no life behind her eyes and that she had tried to kill Root and the others. Perhaps the mouse was forced into it. No, the mouse had not deserved death. No one deserved death. No one, but, perhaps a murderer. A murderer like Root.

He hadn't meant to do anything but curl into a ball and die. That's all he had wanted to do. But then that whisper-like instinct had become a roar and, suddenly, the whisper was Root. The instinct had taken over and he had watched, a spectator, as he flew at the empty-eyed beasts and ripped at them, tearing and pushing and screaming…screaming a scream that was more terrible than, perhaps, everything else. Root didn't want to be insane, but, with a voice that took over your body and a scream that practically rang with insanity, what could he be? Perhaps, if you were insane, you couldn't help murdering people…but, no, Root wouldn't excuse himself for what he had done. Murder was murder, and death was death. He couldn't argue with something like that.

"Fatefiend, are you all right?" Redsplash's voice was distant, somehow, as if sounding from very, very far away. Someone, or something, groaned painfully in reply.

"Squirrel." Darkclaw sounded angry, and anger was not a good thing. Too much anger could upset your stomach, Root noted distractedly. Someone should really warn the wildcat about too much anger. "Squirrel, will you stop looking like the mouse had a life to _loose_?"

_They feel pain…_ "They feel pain." Root mimicked the whisper like a good little puppet, staring blankly at the mouse, whose empty eyes looked more full of life now that she was dead than they had when she had been throwing darts.

"Of course they _feel_ it, but, to them, it doesn't feel _bad_. You know they love it. Stop acting like an idiot. We've got to leave before they bring the Blacks, or even the Whites, out."

"The what…?" Root asked quietly, beginning the draining process of dragging himself back up to the surface of reality.

"You know." Darkclaw replied morbidly, and Root did.

_Swords and spears and poison…you will become a Gray. Run. Leave them behind…go, **now**_. But Root was far too spiteful towards himself to care if he could be killed or turned into one of those grab-garbed maniacs. He wanted to wait for them, to let them drag him off and kill him. That's all he wanted. Death or to be turned into a complete puppet, rather than one allowed to taste freedom except when someone needed to die.

"Fatefiend, you idiot, why'd you never learn to _dodge_?" Redsplash demanded bitterly.

"Hard to dodge…" Fatefiend sounded as if all the breath had been taken from him and he was speaking on the last exhale he had. "When there's a hundred of the damn things flying at you at _once_."

"Oh, please, like that's an excuse!" Redsplash snapped fiercely back at him.

"We have to leave now." Darkclaw commented and turned. Root turned with him, as if there were invisible strings attaching the two. Fatefiend was standing slowly, and swaying dangerously. He looked drunk, and Redsplash looked only a little better. Confused, Root wondered how he knew the darts were poisoned if the poison was not affecting him, and why, if his paw had hurt so much before, could he not feel it at all now?

"I don't know if Fatefiend can run." Redsplash replied darkly. "He looks a bit…unstable."

"Oh, take your unstable and-" At this point, Fatefiend fell completely over, depriving the three of them with the end to his remark. With a growl of agitation, Darkclaw scooped the ferret up in one paw, turned in the direction of the setting sun once more, and lunged into a sprint that seemed too fast for the otter and the squirrel to even think about matching.

Practically emitting anger and confusion, Redsplash leapt past him, following the wildcat with a speed that was surprisingly quick. Root stayed where he was, frowning softly as he continued to drag himself up out of the pit his real self had been buried in when the whisper had taken over. He was almost himself again, when he heard it. The whisper. Again. _Turn to the left…_Obediently, Root turned to see a female squirrel with aristocratic and fierce features, dressed a strangely designed blood red dress, step out from behind a tree and take several quick paces towards him.

"Have you returned, then?" Came her voice, clear and questioning. A smile, quick but unsure, crossed her lips, though it did not reach her steely blue eyes.

"No." Root hadn't wanted to reply, but, here he was, a puppet again, his real self being shoved out of the way once again. "I promised never to return, and, rightfully, I should not be here."

"You can't leave." The squirrel said, her blue eyes wide and abruptly tear-filled. She reached out as if to touch his face and he drew back with a light growl. "Please, don't leave us again." She pleaded tearfully.

"Your kind is full of failure. I will not stay here, and I have no intention of ever coming back again." At least this part was true, though Root regretted the tears now falling down the other's face. He didn't want to kill anybody, and he didn't want to make anyone cry. What kind of a monster was he?

But she was not crying for very long. Abruptly, she stopped crying and bared nightmarishly pointy teeth at him. "If you will not stay willingly," she growled, "We will bury in a coffin and _force_ you to!"

"Better a coffin than a cage." Root growled back, turned on his heels, and practically flew after the other three.

Darkclaw knew what was happening. The fact that the squirrel wasn't with him or the otter told the wildcat that there was reunion going on behind him that had to be less than pleasant. So, he was running as fast as he could with the extra bulk of the ferret carried carefully but less-than-graciously in his large paws. As fast as he could, anyway, without letting the otter fall behind and get herself lost. Of all the things he didn't need after all this, losing the otter was at least in the top seven on his long and bitter list.

Darkclaw knew, when he saw the squirrel suddenly appear beside the otter, that things were about to get very dangerous. So, he sped up. The otter shouted for him to slow down, but Darkclaw knew better than that. If she wanted to live, she would have to run faster than that. The poison was probably what was slowing her so drastically, but, really, she could be trying a bit harder to fight back the affects of it, or she could die. Besides, the squirrel knew where they were going, and, if she really did get lost, Darkclaw doubted the squirrel would simply leave her. Though they did not seem to have the most wonderful relationship, the squirrel seemed sentimental…he would never leave anyone to die.

"I'm gonna _kill_ him!" Redsplash growled vehemently, as she watched Darkclaw disappear.

"Run, Redsplash. _Run_!" Root replied, sounding suddenly very breathless. Redsplash looked up at him, and then followed his gaze, glancing back over her shoulders. There were the gray things again, only, this time, they were mixed quite heartily with black and, occasionally, white-garbed beasts. Weaponry glittered morbidly, and darts flew at them. Fortunately, they were so far ahead of the empty-eyed beasts, that the darts did nothing but drug the forest floor. Still, it gave Redsplash incentive to follow Root's suggestion, and follow it quite heartily.

Time seemed to bunch together in long seconds that lasted for hours, and then flee from them making hours last minutes. It was strange, how one could never really tell what one's limits were until there were really tested. Root, at this point, was not entirely thrilled about his life, and was not sure he even wanted it to go on…but it was amazing how attached you got to your life once someone tried to take it away. They ran for what seemed forever, and then they kept running. Eventually, just breathing was more torture than pleasure as they stumbled onward, with the gray-garbed beasts always gaining and never tiring. Both of them stumbled more than once and the other reached down and pulled them back up, with neither of them saying anything. It was hard to understand their own thoughts, when all they could think about was the pain in their lungs, ribs, and legs.

It was getting harder to remember to breathe, and even harder to force his body to take the air in, when he remembered to breathe, anyway. He couldn't feel his paw or his legs, and it was a strange feeling to be running but not feel the ground at all. Redsplash did not seem to be in any better condition, if the strange mixture of a gasp, a curse, and a hiss that was her current system of breathing was any sign of how she really felt. Things were getting desperate now, because he could not even remember why he was running. All he wanted to do was fall, faint, or fade away. Just a bit of rest, so he could catch the breath that seemed to be actively fleeing from him. That's all…just a bit of rest…

And then, abruptly, they were out of the forest. This barely registered in Redsplash's harassed and numbing mind, and she just kept going with the same staggering-stumbling steps. For a full fifteen seconds she kept going and then, suddenly, Root's faint and harsh voice reached her ears. "Stop…Stop, Redsplash…they won't follow…can't leave the…" And then the squirrel fell over, unable, it seemed, to stand up any longer.

Redsplash wearily turned around, glancing first at the squirrel and then at the forest, deciding that she was not going to take another step. If those creatures had pursued her this far and were still intent on killing her, then they could have her carcass, as long as they killed her so she could get some rest. Wearily and slowly, she looked at the forest and her eyes focused very slowly, and her mind took a compressed eternity to understand the image her eyes sent her. The thousands of gray, white, and black-garbed beasts were standing at the very edge of the forest, staring at the two of them quietly. For several long haunting seconds, the empty-eyed beasts simply looked at her and then, as if answering an unheard call, turned around disappeared into the forest. And then, Redsplash fell over.

It wasn't that she decided to fall, it was that her legs refused to hold her any longer. Something shifting and warm caught her and she lay there, gasping desperately and futilely. She had only barely begun to get some air in her empty lungs when she was forced to roll over, support herself on shaky arms, and vomit up of every single morsel of food in her gut. And then Root did the same. Redsplash crawled away from the evidence of the stomach's surrender, and curled into a gasping ball in the warmth of whatever was on the ground.

It was possible she stayed there for a year, or maybe just a minute, but it was over all too quickly. A gigantic shadow fell over her and Redsplash knew that her break was over. "If you stay like that, it will get better slower. Get up, and follow." Darkclaw's apathetic rumble was less than music to the otter's ears, but she knew it was right. Never before had she been so out of breath, but that really didn't matter. She had survived, and that mattered. Now, she needed to get rid of the pain and get some sleep.

The otter and the squirrel stumbled listlessly after the wildcat as he led them, across what Redsplash finally noticed was sand, towards a grassy area that was ten minutes to far for Redsplash's liking. They passed several small groupings of tree, which would have served as decent camps, but none of them wanted anything to do with trees after being chased past millions of the things. When they reached the grass, they found Fatefiend stirring away at something that smelled rather good. Without bothering to say anything else to them, Darkclaw wandered away with his large pack of dead fox meat and, just in sight of the other three, began hungrily devouring the well-preserved, but what had to be rather cold, food.

"Thought you two would be showing up right about now." Fatefiend told them in an oddly raspy voice. "Decided you'd be hungry."

"No." Redsplash breathed. "Thirsty, though. Very thirsty."

"Here." Fatefiend said and kicked a jug of water over towards her. "Don't drink too much. You'll be sick."

"Mmm. To late." Redsplash remarked as she gulped down several mouthfuls and then, reluctantly, passed the water to Root, who also took a drink before passing the water back to Fatefiend.

"I'm going to go sleep." Redsplash said. "If any more of the monsters show up, tell them to kill me quietly so as I don't wake up." And with that she stumbled perhaps seven paces away and then simply fell over. Seconds later the sounds of her gentle snores could be heard in the death-quiet of still evening.

"What can I say?" Fatefiend asked with a grin. "Near-death experiences always make her sleepy."

"I'm hungry." Root replied, rather bluntly. "When will that be ready?" He gestured at the pot of whatever it was.

"Now, I suppose." Fatefiend answered, and cleared his throat. "Find yourself a bowl."

So Root did, and it was while he was devouring what turned out to be soup, that he noticed Fatefiend's eyes seemed a bit red. "Are you all right?" He questioned, concerned and, yet, still hungry. It was odd that Fatefiend was the one being polite while he, the moral one, was rudely demanding food and slurping it down without thanks.

"I will be." Fatefiend replied with a sigh. "Turns out I'm allergic to the poison. You should have seen me an hour ago. My whole face was puffy. I looked almost as hideous as my father."

"I'm sorry." And Root was, genuinely, sorry.

"Me too." Fatefiend sighed and then shrugged. "Don't suppose it matters though, it'll fade in time. I just hope most of the swelling goes away before Redsplash is awake enough to notice…she may not mean it, but her jests can be rather harsh on one's ego."

"You don't think she means it?" Root questioned quietly as he refilled his bowl with soup.

"I don't think she means much of what she says, actually." Fatefiend responded, "Though if you say that to her, she'll try to hurt you."

"She's got a very…unique personality." Root commented as he ate.

"Course she does…why else do you think we'd get along?" He shrugged and looked over at the dreaming figure of Redsplash. "She my best friend, though."

"I wasn't aware you had any others."

Fatefiend snorted. "When I was a prince, I certainly did. Or there were several that wanted to be _my_ friend. But, real friends? Those were very hard to come by. In fact, in my life, I've only had two. Redsplash and Adthe."

"Adthe?"

"Yes. I grew up with him…I haven't seen him since I fled my father's castle. I wonder if he's still alive…"

"Strange friendships…when you have to wonder if the other is still alive."

Fatefiend laughed at that, though a bit bitterly. "Strange life, when you have to wonder if your father is still hunting you or not."

"I imagine he is, if any of the stories I have heard about his stubbornness are accurate." Root replied ruefully, remembering the whispered memories the foxes had used to share with each other across the many fires Root had been forced to create for them. They had fought against the Nameless One when he first arrived on the shores but, after the first battle or two, they had deserted their doomed army, and, after hearing the stories, even Root could not blame them.

"Stubborn? My father? No…my father is no more stubborn than Redsplash is insane…" Fatefiend said with a wide grin and bitter shake of his swollen head.

"Odd, that most think that your father is stubborn, and that I'm thoroughly convinced of Redsplash's insanity."

"No, my father is not stubborn. He is smart. He knows very well that if he lets me or Redsplash continue with our freedom, he will look weak, or at least weaker than before. And if he looks weaker, then he has to deal with more rebellions and insurrections, and the like. Not that he cares, or that he could be defeated, but it would be a waste of time to him." This was said bitterly, and Fatefiend seemed to hate his father far more than he hated anything else. It was strange, Root thought, that one could hate someone in their own family so much, but, then, Root couldn't remember his, so he supposed he had no right to judge.

"Oh."

"And, as for Redsplash, she isn't insane. She has no common sense, that's for sure, and so much pride she can act insane sometimes. I think she's afraid, really, but I don't know what of. Her life, as much of it as I know, has never been what anyone would call easy or peaceful, so I think peace makes her uneasy. She doesn't like to trust and she doesn't like it when others trust her."

"Do you know anything about her past?" Root questioned mildly, remembering Fatefiend joke about the fact that Redsplash, too, could be exiled royalty.

"Only that she was enslaved as cub, before I even arrived at my father's castle. Her family was never enslaved with her, so I always supposed she was taken from them…but when I asked if she wanted to search them out last season, she said we would only be searching for graves. That makes no sense, though, because the Nameless One always needs more slaves. If she was taken as a cub, then her family must have been adults when they found her. They would have taken them too. I think she was lying about that."

"Why? What else could be the truth?" Root asked curiously. He did not think of Redsplash as much a liar, though, considering that it was _Redsplash_ they were talking about, he didn't suppose there was much Redsplash wouldn't do to ease her own life.

"Well, she could have been stolen from her family, as I originally thought, or her family could have simply abandoned her. There is another possibility…that her own family sold her into slavery, but I doubt that. I've never been able to figure it out, and she gets violent whenever I bring it up." Fatefiend admitted with a shrug.

"Redsplash violent. Oh, how my imagination stretches just to picture _that_." Root remarked bitterly with a roll of his leaf-green eyes.

Fatefiend snorted. "Eh, so she's a bit violent. Doesn't mean she's not a good friend."

"I don't think she's a friend at all." Root answered.

Fatefiend scowled at that, the humor draining from his face. "Watch that, mate. Redsplash may not be brilliant, or even all that nice, but she is the best friend I've ever had, or ever deserved. She's saved me more times than I care to count. Now, granted, she was always rather rude to me and called me vicious names while she was at it, but it's the principle of the thing that matters. No, she's not perfect, but, of all the creatures I know, Redsplash is the one I trust most to save my neck if it's ever in danger."

Root took this in silence, and then nodded mutely. For a long time he was silent and then, his tone more apologetic than anything, finally spoke. "I don't imagine I've seen the same side of her you have."

"Probably not. She's not overly fond of new acquaintances." Fatefiend answered, his tone light once more. So that was how they apologized in this little cult of theirs, Root observed, by apologizing properly it at all.

"I'm surprised you survived so many of the darts, if you're allergic to it." Root said quietly after several seconds of oddly companionable silence.

"Are you joking? It takes far more than a bit of sharpened sticks with poison dribbled on them to kill _me_. I'm invincible, you know."

"Are you?" Root asked, wondering if Fatefiend really thought he was.

"Oh, yes, right up until the day I die." The ferret answered with a wide grin, and then, suddenly, the grin was replaced with a curious look. "Why didn't the poison bother you?"

Root's mind snapped back to the squirrel maiden dressed in white that he asked him if he had come back. The squirrel hadn't really thought about it, had been actively avoiding that, actually, but now the entire scene replayed in his mind. He would have liked to ponder seriously on that for a very long time, but the ferret was sitting there expectantly, waiting for an answer, and so Root, much to his shame, lied.

"I dunno. Maybe I'm just immune to it, like you can be immune to some diseases." Root answered uneasily, forcing his eyes not to shift back and forth uneasily.

Fatefiend stared at him, his facial expression saying quietly obviously he knew the squirrel was lying. "Oh, all right, mate. If you say so."

"I think I'm just going to get some sleep." Root said, and practically jumped to his feet.

"Goodnight then, and if you feel a screaming nightmare coming on, gag yourself." Fatefiend answered with a yawn and began the process of the killing the fire.

Root did not feel that deserved an answer, and so he bounded several paces away, dug into the sand a bit, and then collapsed into it, unable to believe, suddenly, how completely tired he was. He did not even have time to ponder deeply the meeting in the woods.


	4. Chapter Four

((Well, I'm not sure I liked this chapter…I think I'm sabotaging myself, actually. I can't really explain why I would be sabotaging myself, as it would ruin the whole plot, but I thought I'd tell whoever's listening that I'm sabotaging myself. My character's personalities are doing something strange…mutating perhaps? Strange how, even though _I_ created them, I really don't have complete control over them. Pff…now I sound all philosophical. Anyway, I'm sorry if they don't seem realistic in this chapter. I suppose I tried to show that even thought Redsplash really is pretty much antisocial, she's still Fatefiend's friend…and then I went and tried to show that they're all still really young, and I think it blew up in my face. Oh, well, perhaps I'm just being a bit too harsh to myself.

Anyway, so I tried to force myself through this chapter as fast as I could without ruining it. I'm attempting to get the chapters up reasonably quickly now, as I've pretty much just been writing on this whenever the mood strikes me, and that's not fair to people who actually read what I write. So, yeah, I _tried_ to get through with this one quickly. Didn't work that way though, eh?))

Fatefiend woke before the others, and blinked blearily at the rising sun from where he lay, curled around the ashes of the fire that he had killed last night. For what seemed an eternity he just lay there, watching the world without having to react to it, but, eventually, he knew he would have to get up. Still, knowing that you have to do something and actually doing it are two very different things. He listened, still half asleep, to the sounds of the others as they slept. Redsplash was not snoring now, which meant she was having nightmares, and, if the muffled whimpers Root was emitting were any indication, the squirrel's dreams were not exactly pleasant either. Darkclaw was deathly silent…but then, that was how the wildcat always was, unless he was dolling out morbid monologues.

With an internal sigh, Fatefiend decided he might as well get up. And when he did, he screamed like a lost little bear cub screaming for it's mother while being torn to shreds.. A lost little _female _bear cub screaming for its' mother. He fell back the few inches he had managed to sit up, and panted harshly as the pain from his stomach and ribs kept him pinned, twitching oddly, to the sand. A rushing sensation filled his mind, and the entire peaceful blue of the sky darkened and faded. Blinking rapidly, he mouthed silent objections as the pain began to, slowly, lessen.

Seconds after he regained control of his sense of hearing, he could hear Redsplash and Root screeching their little hearts out, just as Fatefiend had moments before. And he knew that, whatever monster was currently devouring his guts, was feeding off of the other two, and yet couldn't force himself to care. He closed his eyes and pressed his skull back against the sand, biting his lower lip viciously to keep himself quiet. After all, the pain was bad enough without adding a sore throat to list. It probably only lasted for a minute or so, but that did not matter at all. Pain was still pain, and Fatefiend had felt worse only because his father was a sadist.

In the tiny aftershocks of an earthquake of pain, Fatefiend lay sprawled in the sand, panting. Perhaps five minutes after the pain finally faded, Darkclaw's scowling face appeared over him. "Idiots. I suppose it never occurred to you that after running for _hours_ your muscles might be a bit sore?" He bared fangs dangerously at the three of them. "And none of you had better scream like that again."

Silence fell and then Fatefiend, with Redsplash coming in only a second later, began to scream like an opera singer being stabbed with stabbed to death with needles. Needless to say, Darkclaw did not appreciate this, and, within seconds, had rendered them both unconscious by kicking them both very hard in the skull.

It took a full hour for the squirrel to crawl soundlessly over to where Darkclaw sat, brooding over the ashes of the fire. Darkclaw glanced up at him and, as an incentive to keep quiet, lifted a fox leg to his lips and tore a long strip of flesh off the bone. This proved too much for Root after such a long ordeal of crawling seven feet, and the squirrel fainted dead away.

"What strange company you keep, Darkclaw." Called a voice, accompanied by the fluttering of wings.

Darkclaw glanced to his right to see a hawk landing beside him. "Have you got a message?" He demanded roughly, tossing the meat at the squirrel's unconscious form.

"Not quite." The hawk replied, glancing around questioningly at the three unconscious beasts.

"Then get out of here." Darkclaw growled, his ears flattening against his skull.

"Temperamental today, are we?" the hawk replied mockingly. When Darkclaw swiped at him with his claws fully out, the hawk only managed to escape being torn into shreds by some miracle of fate and reflexes.

"Darkwing, I am far from in the mood to deal with anything but a dead body." Darkclaw informed the startled hawk with an expression one might call full of malice.

"The Ghost has appeared again." Darkwing informed him, much more somber now that the wildcat had attempted, in a way, to kill him.

"Has he?" The wildcat seemed more interested than murderous for the first time all day. He looked at the hawk with less anger, and his ears pricked forward instead of lay flat.

"Yes. On his way to Salamandastron, just like your little band of the brainless." Darkwing informed him with a nod. "I overheard one of his close friends say that the Ghost wished to meet the badger lord and request something from him. Some kind of weapon, I think."

"A weapon? The Ghost? I thought he only wanted peace." Darkclaw replied, filing the insult about his intelligence away for time when he had the energy to reply in kind.

"Oh, he's gotten downright brutal lately. I heard he failed in some kind of venture, or lost something he would have liked to keep found. No creature knows much about him, I'm afraid. Currently goes by the name 'Fallen,' actually. Oh, and, by the way, he was recently held captive in your very own castle."

"_What_?" Darkclaw demanded, very surprised by this news. He wondered how he could not have known this. Was his little venture around the world with Redsplash and her cronies really keeping him so distant from the rest of the world that his contacts had stopped giving him news altogether? This would not do. Not at all. It sounded like some creatures needed little reminders of his existence. He would begin with that in a moment.

"Oh, yes, was kept in your very own dungeon." Darkwing informed him, seeming to take special delight in Darkclaw's not knowing. "Bluefang had him captured as the otter was walking past the castle. Wanted to hire him as an assassin, or something of the like, and the otter spat in his face. So, Bluefang had him tossed in the dungeon and ordered him executed the next day. Your sister set Fallen free in the middle of the night, and Bluefang raged for weeks about it. Threw his own sister in the dungeon for about half an hour until she broke out and threatened to barbecue him if he tried it again." Here the hawk laughed cheerfully. "Quite a power struggle going on you home, Darkclaw. Too bad you've been forced to miss it."

"You're awfully cheerful, Darkwing." Darkclaw remarked, his smile perhaps flashing a few too many fangs, but a smile none the less. "Is there any reason?"

"Yes, actually, the eggs have recently hatched. Sorrowsong and I have five fledglings, and not one of them was born unhealthy." Darkwing was practically beaming.

Darkwing lunged, pining the hawk's fragile wingtips to the ground and effectively holding the hawk in place. He growled softly and brought his face just out of reach of Darkwing's dangerous beak. "How lovely it is to hear of the birth of young ones at such a troubling time for me and my kin. If you _ever_ insult my family or myself by _daring_ to mock me again, I will hunt down each of your fledglings and rip the feathers from their wings before throwing them off a _very_ high cliff. Now, since you are rather useful when you want to be, I won't kill your family for the insults I've just heard, but if you _ever_ insult my family or myself again, than any threat I have ever made against you and your family will be carried through, Darkwing. Don't forget who I am and what I can do simply because you have _children_ now." Darkclaw paused for just one second, and then he was back, sitting angrily by the ashes, as if nothing had ever happened.

Darkwing stood up and flapped his wings several times, sending sand on the squirrel as he checked to see if any important feathers had been damaged. "I see you haven't lost your…poetic…way of threatening others, Warheart Prince." The hawk murmured darkly.

"Never." Darkclaw returned sharply. "Now, travel to the mountain of Salamandastron and find out their current troubles. I will be traveling that way with the others. Meet me along the way, and _don't_ take too long getting back because you are visiting those _children_ of yours."

Darkwing let out a shriek and flew into the air, leaving the four of them behind in contempt. Only when he was beginning to go out of sight, did he turn towards the mountain of Salamandastron, turning his back towards his hatchlings. Oh, well, he would see them again. And, besides, Darkclaw made no empty threats.

"Well, there you go, Red. We should've let them eat us." Fatefiend remarked to the otter, who was sprawled next to him, currently using his shoulder as a pillow.

"Eh. Who said they wanted to eat us? Maybe they just wanted to worship us as their gods." Redsplash replied in a lazy voice, yawning halfway through.

"Who chases their gods through the forest throwing weaponry at them?" Fatefiend questioned curiously.

"It's religion. Beasts get crazy about religion."

"Oh, right. Right." Fatefiend answered agreeably, nodding slightly.

"Are you two planning to just lie there all day?" Root demanded as he walked towards them, carrying their lunches of sandwiches and cold water carefully, but rather discontentedly.

"You should try it, squirrel. It's really relaxing." Fatefiend yawned.

"Should I feed this to you, or do you think you'll be able to handle it?" Root returned sarcastically, as he held the plate with three sandwiches out towards them.

"Eh. I suppose I can sit up for this." Redsplash admitted and, with a sigh that turned into a hiss of pain, slowly sat up. Fatefiend, relieved of her weight on his shoulder, followed suit, wincing.

"Ah, I knew running was a killer." The ferret mumbled as he took a sandwich and a swig of water out of the canteen.

"You didn't even run." Redsplash replied, skeptically instead of irately.

"Are you joking? 'Bout halfway through, Darkclaw dropped me and said if I didn't run, I'd be killed. Great loveable furry thing _he_ is, just dropping me like that." Fatefiend took a bite out of his sandwich and chewed it viciously, anger at this terrible injustice written all over his face.

Redsplash snorted. "Aw, poor little dear. Do you need a hug?"

"Yes, actually." Fatefiend replied, sniveling like he was actually hurt.

"Root!" Redsplash shouted, getting the attention of the snacking squirrel, who looked up at her with a bit of something hanging onto his lip doggedly. "Ferret needs a hug."

Root and Fatefiend exchanged a long look, before both, simultaneously, going back to their lunch. Redsplash snickered at them darkly until Fatefiend poured a bit of water into his paw, and sent droplets flying into her face. The otter, terribly indignant, responded by hurling a bit of bread at him. Fatefiend grabbed the lettuce out of Root's sandwich, and hurled it at Redsplash. Lettuce leaf smacked into her face and stayed there, and Root, objecting loudly through a mouthful of sandwich, lunged towards Redsplash, in a doomed attempt to get his food back. So, it was pretty much Root's fault that the sand meant to hit Fatefiend landed in Root's eyes. Still, no one told Root and he responded by throwing sand at her, but, blinded as he was, his aim wasn't exactly that good, and his fist ended up slamming into Fatefiend's still slightly-swollen jaw.

The bewildering water-food-sand-fist fight that resulted from this was anything but serious, as, every five seconds, one of them would yelp at the pain from their sore muscles, and another would fall over laughing. Still, it wore them all out, and when the confusion that was the fight ender, Redsplash was using Fatefiend's stomach as an elbow rest, and kicking sand at Root, who was sprawled, panting, on the sand, holding the empty water canteen in front of his eyes in order to keep the sand out of them. Fatefiend, needless to say, was not that happy about his poor stomach muscles being abused by Redsplash's elbow, and was voicing his opinion rather loudly, which caused Redsplash to laugh, resulting in poor aim.

"Truce!" Fatefiend called out, "I call a _truce_!"

"You'd better." Redsplash responded, laughing happily, as she removed her elbow form his stomach and, before he could stand up and begin kicking massive amounts of sand at her, reemployed his shoulder as pillow again, and yawned heartily.

"It's amazing you two have lived this long." Root remarked as he slithered over closer and then collapsed, looking over at them tiredly.

"Oh, we wouldn't be acting like this is we didn't know Darkclaw was watching our every move." Fatefiend replied quietly. "Got to make the old wildcat think we've got no survival skills of our own."

"You know he only pretends to go away, and then watches?" Root asked, shocked.

"Oh, we've known about Darky's odd little stalker-habits for a very long time." Redsplash answered with a lazy shrug. "Fatefiend figured it out, and then told me."

"Hmm. That's interesting." Root replied neutrally, as he let out a yawn and let his eyes flutter closed.

"Yes…there's a lot Darkclaw thinks we don't know that we do." The ferret added cryptically. Root's eyes snapped open, and he stared at them, wondering if they knew about Darkclaw's plot to kill the badger lord.

"Fatefiend," Redsplash started sleepily, her tone taking on a strange drawling to it now. "Have I ever seen a hawk?"

"A hawk?" Fatefiend asked curiously, looking at her as best he could without disturbing her.

"Yes. Big. Mostly black. Large beak…sharp-looking claws." Redsplash described the bird.

"Talons." Fatefiend corrected mildly. "They don't have claws. They have talons."

"Oh. I should probably care." Redsplash admitted, her voice more yawn than words now.

Fatefiend laughed quietly. "Yes, you probably should. And, no, you've never seen a hawk…that you told me about, anyway. I suppose you might have seen one before we met."

Redsplash's eyes narrowed in momentary thought. "No…" she muttered. "I remember back then. I remember all of that. It's the slave years that I can't always remember. I was just wonderin' if I'd ever seen a hawk."

"Were you now? And why was that?" Fatefiend asked, obviously humoring her as she started to fade into the strange world of dreams.

"Cuz I saw one…" Redsplash murmured. "Think it was a dream…saw it talkin' to Darkclaw about some otter that wasn't me."

"There are _other_ otters?" Fatefiend joked. "Who knew?"

"Who _cared_?" Redsplash corrected and then, with a final yawn, she was out.

Fatefiend snorted and turned his gaze on Root. "Looks rather naive asleep, don't she?"

Root glanced lazily over at the otter. "Except for the scars."

"Eh. Everyone's got scars. Some run deeper than the others, and some run so deep that you can't even see them."

"What kind of scars run so deep you can't see them?"

"Scars form wounds you never suffered physically. You've got 'em, definitely. Anything that wakes you up screamin'…it's all scars for wounds on the inside. Redsplash's got some that'll get 'er eventually. They're like a poison, sometimes. If you don't get rid of the poison, it'll eat away at you. Drives you mad sometimes, and other times it just makes you go bad. Evil. Happened to my dad, you know. He wasn't so evil when he was born. Raised to be good, actually. My grandparents were farmers, not killers. Rulers of a small village somewhere in the far east."

"What happened?" Root questioned quietly, not wanting to wake Redsplash or Fatefiend out of whatever stupor that was making them act almost…friendly. Maybe near-death experiences made them saner…

"He never told me. Bad things must've happened. Or, you know, his ancestry got him in the end."

"I thought you said his parents were good."

"Oh, yes, both of 'em. But, they were the only good ones in the bunch. Their parents, and their parents' parents' parents…murderers, torturers, backstabbing maniacs, all of 'em. Goes all the way back to Jarijifax the Foul. Evil breath _and_ evil intentions."

"Lovely."

"Eh. It's family. Blood. Got all of my family in the end. Even my grandparents died fightin' the bad fight. There're something's you're born with, you know? You can't fight what you were born to be."

"So, you think you'll go evil?" Root asked, "In the long run?"

"I don't know. I suppose you could say I am already. I've killed, and I've tortured, but I don't like to think I am. I always used to tell my father I hoped I die before I became like him. Back then I was pretty sure I didn't have a choice if I would go evil. Maybe I really don't."

"Doesn't seem fair."

"No, but I don't care as much as I should. As long as Red's alive and I've got food and wine, I'm perfectly happy. Eh, it's a bonus if I get immortality and infinite power, but I don't want to ask too much. There are sober creatures out there, you know."

"_You're _sober."

"Only technically." Fatefiend responded with a wink.

"You're crazy."

"Course I am. What's the other option? Not one I'd like to think about. Anyway, stop talking so I can go to sleep. You bore me with your seriosity."

"'Seriosity' is not a word, Fatefiend."

"Do you see what I mean?" Fatefiend demanded and then, yawning, gave a slight wave of his paw and closed his eyes, falling to dreams.

"_Brighteye, now **why** do you constantly attempt to escape?"_

"_I didn't mean it. I really didn't. Just let me go. Please?"_

"_Go where?"_

"_Anywhere. I just want to go away."_

"_Of course you do. Who wants to be a slave? I don't. Do you?"_

"_No…"_

"_I wouldn't think so. But, you see, there is an order to this world, and without that order it would fall apart. Some of us are born to have power, and some of us are born to loose it. I, for instance, was born to have power and to, in some beast's eyes, abuse this power."_

"_You're a monster."_

"_Am I? Is that what you think? Now, really, Brighteye, with your family's reputation I expected something a bit deeper than that. Your mother understood much better than any of the other creatures I've ever encountered."_

"_My mother told me you were monster."_

"_That's a lie. What did I tell you about lying?" The monster sighed. "In the absence of your parents, I feel it is my unfortunate duty to teach you the basic rules of life. Are you listening?"_

"_Do I have to?"_

"_Well, I could always dig your ears out of your skull."_

"_No, no, please don't do that."_

"_Fine, then listen. Now, most otters would tell you that there is a good and a bad…a black and a white and nothing can cross that line. Most tyrants would tell you that there was no black and white, no good and bad, but power and those who have it and those who don't. They would tell you that those who don't have power **deserve** to be hurt and murdered, and that, since they have power, they have the right to do whatever they want whenever they want to. But, Brighteye, I am not most tyrants. Still listening?"_

"_Yes…"_

"_Good. Life is all how you look at it. You might hate being cut and burned, but there are some beasts out there who love it. We call them masochists. And there are some who like to cut and burn others, and we call them sadists. Most would tell you that I am a sadist, but, really, I'm not near as shallow as that. There are those that enjoy both their own pain and the pain of others. Those beasts are called ' sadomasochists.'"_

"_Are they monsters like you?"_

"_You just love that word, don't you?" _

"_It's the truth."_

"Truth is relative, my dear cub, and in here all that matters is how I want the truth to relate. Now, listen closely. Sadomasochists are all those good beasts out there. All of those fighting for freedom and honor and- your favorite-truth. None of them would admit it, but it's absolutely true. Honor, freedom, truth, love, loyalty, all of those lovely things come with a price. And it's not the type of price that's easy to pay off. Those things will take all you have…they'll take your pride, your mind, your soul…your life…To want any of those you have to be a masochist. To want freedom from pain you have to worship it first. That's what we call ironic."

"I don't want to hear this."

"I don't want to care and, between the two of us, what **I** want matters is the only want that matters. Right, anyway, I have explained the masochist part, but not the sadist part. Good beasts are always out to kill something else. Even the peaceful ones are always wishing death and dismay to us poor mistreated evil beasts. If given half the chance, they would kill us all. And half of them are sure we don't deserve an easy death. Not that they would have the stomach to kill us slow, but it's the will, not the will**power**, that counts. Do you understand?"

"I don't want to hear this. I don't want to hear **any** of this."

"Am I poisoning you're do-only-good mindset? Are your parent's words becoming hard to hear now that your own opinions are starting to form?"

"**Stop it**!"

"Really, Brighteye, you're pathetically easy to manipulate. If you ever **do** escape, you're going to be just like the rest of us vermin. Oh, what would your family think if they knew their last living member was ruining their legacy?"

"I'll kill you. Someday I'll kill you."

"And thus is birthed the sadist in you, Brighteye, and at such a young age. How marvelous. Now, let's see if we can bring out the masochist in you, hmm?"

Redsplash's eyes snapped open and she looked around, confused and bewildered. Where was she? Where was the Nameless One's castle? How had she gotten free? What was this ground? Sand? What? What?

She looked around and, to her horror, saw the Nameless One asleep in nearly the same spot she had just vacated. Smothering a scream, she crawled backwards quickly, and nearly ended up in the clutches of a gigantic wildcat, that opened a demonically green eye and gave her a glare. Brighteye vaulted to her feet and bit her lip to hold back a sob, unable to understand what was going on.

"Redsplash, if you insist on jumping around in the middle of night, would you mind not nearly landing on me next time?" The wildcat rumbled darkly.

Redsplash? What…And then Redsplash remembered, and hated the weak memory that had just been in control of her body. With a dark growl, she stalked away from the rest of them. Away from Darkclaw who she had, for the briefest second, feared. Away from Root who she currently despised. Away from Fatefiend, her only friend, who she had thought was her greatest enemy. She definitely did not feel like staying anywhere near the others now.

Fuming, she stalked several minutes away from them and threw herself down in the sand, grinding her teeth the entire time. How she hated who she had once been. That particular memory she despised with the special kind of hate reserved for the many tortures she had endured that had left their permanent marks on her mind. And that one was special, too, because it was the only thing she remembered from the first twenty days she had been captured. That one and one other, but…no…there was no way she would drag up that memory. No, never again. If she had to forfeit sleep tonight, then so be it. That memory would stay buried. Forever.

The pitch-black darkness pulsed dangerously, foreboding. It was the dream again, Root knew it was, but knowing something bad is happening does not make that bad thing any less terrifying…in fact, it often makes it worse. The black blankness closed in around him, chaining him in a hellish place where everything was real, but nothing ever made sense. This place…it was worse than ever before. He could feel something, a flicker of a memory dancing just beyond his reach, and that hurt worse than anything else. To know that he **did** know something, **any**thing, about his past, but couldn't understand what that flickering meant…that was a torture of the cruelest kind. What was wrong with him? Why couldn't he understand his own thoughts?

His paw reached out blindly, searching for the thing he knew would be there. It was always there. A wall of some sort, he knew, but it always seemed to twitch and squirm beneath his paw. Strange, now, how a quiet sense of nostalgia was buzzing in the back of his mind…almost as if…almost as if he was beginning to remember something…Moving forward blindly and biting back screams at the pain from his legs and slashed left paw, he continued with the dream, paying more attention to the feeling that something was being remembered than to the nightmare that ruled his mind.

And then, abruptly, a light came into being. He was so surprised that he nearly woke up, but, no, it wasn't so shocking as it had been last time. His eyes did ache, though, from the abuse of going from darkness to light. And then…then there was a voice, full of humor and concern. "Do you do this to yourself every couple of nights, then?"

And then, like once before, came the sound. Something dripped, slowly, heavy, and he could hear the harsh breathing of someone who had no air to loose. And…then came the screams. Wails that seemed to rip the very air with their sharp pleading. Dying cries that screamed the unfairness of pain at a twitching wall that did not care, in a place full of darkness that breathed in the torture and laughed.

"Now, really, mate, stop that!" Came the voice, loud and commanding.

And then…and then Root realized the beast screaming was him, and his throat burned with the pain of screaming so loud…but it was impossible to stop, because, suddenly, he remembered. He remembered everything and nothing, nothing in the world could be so terrible. And he screamed because finally, **finally** he knew what he was. And he was a monster.

Root sat up, breathing heavily, and never, for as long as he remembered, had he ever felt more like crying. Because it was all gone. All the memories, and the understanding…it was gone. For a second, he had understood and, yes, it had been terrible, but he had known. It was like giving a couple the baby they longed for and then smashing the cubs brains out right in front of them. Torture so painful could not be comprehended, so he lay back in the sand and tried not to cry.

It was such a bitter thing, to have what you wanted most and then have it torn away. Root could not be whole, could not even be anything but a shadow of what he was, until he knew. That's all he wanted, really. Not wealth, or a family, or even a very long life, though any of those would be very nice. All Root wanted was to know who he was. Was that really such a terrible thing? What was it, in his past, that had been so bad he'd been forced to forget I? What could ever be so bad that it would be worse than the not knowing? Nothing. Nothing ever could be worse, and, for a moment, Root had had what he wanted.

He forced his eyes shut, and reminded himself to breathe. Perhaps, if he went back to sleep…perhaps then he would remember. Maybe…maybe…So he attempted to force himself to sleep, but that, as most know and could have told him, never works. Eventually, though, he did fall to sleep, but, just to spite himself, he did not dream at all.

"Ferret, get up." Commanded the wildcat's sinister voice in Fatefiend's ear.

"Dark…?" Fatefiend murmured questioningly, blinking slowly awake. The sun had not yet risen and the stars showed no signs of fading yet. "Dark, this had better be deathly important."

"The otter has demanded we all get on the move." Darkclaw replied. "She has started walking."

Fatefiend said up, wincing as his muscles complained, and saw Redsplash stalking in a vaguely southeast direction. "Isn't she goin' the wrong way?" Fatefiend slurred sleepily.

"Yes." Darkclaw replied and then moved to wake up Root.

"**Red**!" Fatefiend screamed at the top of his lungs, which, although he was still mostly asleep, was about as loud as any creature that walked the earth could scream. Redsplash whirled around so fast she nearly fell over, and Root, who Darkclaw was about to kick awake, sat straight up and let out a startled shout.

"**What**?" Redsplash bellowed back."

"You're **goin'** in the **wrong direction**!" Fatefiend screamed.

Redsplash let out a string of obscenities and began stalking in the correct direction. With a yawn, Fatefiend fell backwards and curled slightly on his side, prepared to go back to sleep. Root, blinking blearily, fell in beside Redsplash as Darkclaw picked up all the packs and followed. On her way past Fatefiend, Redsplash pulled the stopper out of the mostly full canteen of water, and emptied it all over the lightly snoring ferret.

"Red, if you weren't the best friend I've ever had…I would kill you." Fatefiend grumbled viciously as he trudged along in the sand, following Redsplash who was leading them all as if she knew where she was going, which, of course, she didn't.

"You would try." Redsplash corrected grumpily. The venture to Salamandastron was almost over, or so Darkclaw had told her.

"No. I would kill you." Fatefiend argued, brandishing an apple at her back. "I would take this apple and beat you over the head with it, until you died. And then I would spit on your carcass and get some sleep!

"Stop whining, Fatefiend." Redsplash answered without even looking back at him over her shoulder. "It makes you more pathetic than you actually are."

The apple, or, technically, the apple core, thumped against her back a mere second after the words passed her lips. "I am not pathetic!" Fatefiend roared angrily.

Redsplash turned around, grabbed the apple core, and hurled it. It slammed into Fatefiend's forehead, spraying juice all over his face. "Then stop **complaining**!" She bellowed.

"Have I ever woken you up before dawn to go wading through some stupid sand that makes it impossible to walk?" Screamed the ferret. "**No**! And I would appreciate it, if you never did this **again**!"

"You know, Fatefiend, if you're going to act like this, you might as well leave and go somewhere by **yourself**!" Redsplash screamed back.

"Oh, right! And go where, huh? Oh, I know. I'll curl up and die and go the damn Dark Forest. It can't be any worse than being **here**!" Roared the ferret.

Redsplash pushed him so hard he fell over. She then proceeded to kick at his ribs, all the while insulting his ancestry and the general shape of his facial features at the top of her lungs. Root, who had been walking behind even Darkclaw-who was almost out of sight of the other two-arrived in full sprint at this time and tackled Redsplash, carrying the otter with him as momentum sent him flying for several long seconds, Redsplash spewing curses the entire time.

When they landed, Redsplash kneed him in the gut and proceeded to pummel him heartily. Root responded by pushing her away from him, and then rolling in the opposite direction. "Stop this!" The squirrel shouted at the otter. It did no good, though, because she lunged at him, landed on his stomach forcing all the air out of his lungs, and began to punch his face again. Several seconds went by in which time Root attempted to shove her away, and during which Redsplash just continued to hit him over and over again.

"**Aaaaaaaiiiiiiiiiieeeeeeeee**!" Came a thunderous screech and Root grunted as something landed hard on Redsplash, forcing her to, once again, slam into his stomach. For a second, Root couldn't breathe at all, and then Fatefiend had pulled Redsplash off the squirrel and jumped to his feet. Redsplash was on her way to sitting up, when the ferret jumped and landed, hard, on the otter's stomach. Emitting a strange sound of strangulation, Redsplash managed to flip him off her, and he landed hard on the sand, therefore having the air forced out him.

All three of them lay there, forcing air into their abused lungs as their still-sore stomach muscles screamed at them. There was no sound but the shifting of the sand and the harsh pants of all of them. Minutes passed as they lay there, unable to get up or catch their ever-elusive breathe. They heard the sound of Darkclaw approaching and did not bother to react, but stayed just as they were and attempted to remember how to breathe.

All three of them looked up at him as he passed them by, hoping he would manage, somehow, to give them back the air they needed. However, all he did was roll his eyes. "Idiots." He snapped and shook his head, obviously wondering how he ever managed to end up in the company of said idiots.

"What's that noise?" Fatefiend demanded curiously at about three hours past lunchtime. It sounding vaguely familiar, like he had heard it a lot before, but he couldn't quite place it…

"It's the ocean, you dolt." Redsplash retorted sharply.

"Aw, is wittle Wed still upset because I beat her up?" Fatefiend taunted happily.

"The ocean…" Root breathed. "I don't think I've…I've never seen the ocean…"

"Nothing much to see, actually." Fatefiend told him, in a much better mood than before. "Just a whole bunch of blueish greenish brown water that hides sharks and induces nausea and often vomiting. They call it seasickness. Red's got a whole story to tell about seasickness. Go for it, Red. Tell the squirrel."

"I'll squeeze your neck so hard your head'll pop off." Redsplash grumped at him, obviously in an even worse mood than she had been in this morning.

"Huh, must not be in a story-telling mood today." Fatefiend observed thoughtfully, "Anyway, this was the part of our lives when Darkclaw had pretty much kidnapped us and was taking us back to the Nameless One to-and we didn't know about this-betray us to my father in order to get his sister back." Fatefiend's eyes flashed darkly for a minute. "Speaking of that…"

"That was over a season ago." Darkclaw snapped moodily, looking a bit annoyed by all this.

"Well, yes, but you never even apologized!" Fatefiend remarked loudly. "You sold us to my father and you never even said you were sorry!"

"I don't say things that I don't mean." Darkclaw growled, "And, besides, I saved your life."

"No, you did not. Red saved my life." Fatefiend jerked his paw at the stalking otter.

"I found you, the otter, and some other otter sitting in the middle of the hallway dying, and I got you three out of there alive."

"Havoc died." Redsplash growled suddenly, glaring at Darkclaw over her shoulder.

"I did not say I kept you three alive." Darkclaw argued back. "I said that you three were alive when I got you out of the Nameless One's castle."

"Oh…well, all right then." Fatefiend remarked, "Now, Root, as I was saying…we were going over and ocean, or had just started going over an ocean, and Red over there just suddenly started looking a bit green. And Darkclaw says 'You look green. Are you seasick?' and the captain goes 'Otters never get seasick' and Darkclaw says 'I think they do' and the captain says 'I bet they don't' and Red goes 'I'll take that bet' and then runs over to the side of the ship and vomits up all over the ocean. It was great."

Root stared at the ferret blankly, unable to believe he had just said all that without ever once taking a breath. Redsplash was practically stomping her feet with every step now, and Darkclaw was still a bit annoyed at the mention of the past in which he had betrayed them. None of this seemed to occur to Fatefiend, though, who was laughing uproariously at the vomiting story.

"Um, yes…very funny." Root agreed uneasily. He might have been forced to endure more of this, when, suddenly, the sand in the distance turned blue. At first he did not understand, and then he saw it was moving. It was an ocean.

"Are you really leaving then?"

"What, you think I would stay here and be ruled by **him**?"

"He is not as bad as you think. Really. He has promised us treasures beyond…oh, beyond reckoning."

"And none of it's real, Khilijara. He will betray you, and I will not stay behind and wait for the dagger to dig it's way into my back."

"You're a bastard sometimes, you know?"

"Oh, yes, love you too."

"Why are you going by **ocean**? It's unnatural. It's **water**."

"Exactly why he won't think of following me across it. Promise you won't tell him?"

"Oh, I might tell him, if you don't come back soon enough."

"I won't come back at all."

"Then, yes, I will tell him. But…I will give you a head start of five days. For old time's sake."

"For old time's sake then."

"Root! Are you still alive?" Fatefiend's voice brought Root out of whatever strange echoing memory that had just claimed his mind.

Root shuddered and then shook his head, to clear away the lingering feelings of a bitter goodbye. "Oh, what? Yes. Yes, I'm fine."

"Really, mate, you looked dead for a few seconds. Dead standing up…looked kinda funny, actually…"

"Glad my expression amused you." Root responded curtly.

"Well, anyway, mate, like we were just saying," Fatefiend said a bit uneasily, "We've practically arrived at our destination."

"I thought we were going to Salamandastron…not an ocean." Root replied, frowning.

"And what exactly, squirrel, do you think that is?" Darkclaw demanded with a malevolent grin as he gestured at something over Root's shoulder.

The squirrel turned quickly and saw it. The mountain he had followed these lunatics for days to see. It was gigantic, and impressive. No matter how disturbed he was by that little memory-vision of his, he could feel the awe growing in him that the mountain inspired. But the awe vanished quickly, and all that was left was a sense of approaching danger. That insane voice whispered to him feelings…and all of those feelings were warnings. Something bad was going to happen soon, and Root could feel it in his stomach…a danger just waiting to attack and, unlike before, this time even the voice seemed frightened into near silence by the imminent destiny.


	5. Chapter Five

((Urgh…just…urgh. This chapter…I hate it. I don't like how I wrote it and I don't like what I wrote in it. Pff, curse me and my plots…not really, no cursing me, please. Anyway, this chapter has been through Literary Hell. I have written it, deleted it, and rewritten it about a dozen times, debated for days about keeping what I finally came up it, threw the final result it into the computer's trashcan several times, contemplated the necessity for this chapter for many longs hour…minutes…whatever. I couldn't find a way out of it, so here it is. I'm sorry for the delay; I was having "creative differences" with myself and it just wasn't working. Anyway, I'm not going to give away the 'surprise' I've been so 'careful' about hiding after all this chapter has been through. Read on and don't blame me.

Oh, yes, and take note: I rarely do accents and made no attempt at perfecting a hare's accent in this chapter. In fact let's pretend the only hare in this chapter that talks was raised somewhere like Redwall, and talks normally. I still need names of hares.))

"Oh, come on, Root. It's not going to burn you." Fatefiend called mockingly to the hesitant squirrel, who stayed about a pace away from the ocean with the expression of one staring at a noose. Fatefiend and Redsplash were splashing around heartily in the water, cheerful as cubs offered candy and weaponry. Or, rather, _Fatefiend_ was cheerful. Redsplash was standing waist-deep in salt water and staring morbidly across the ocean, as if searching for something.

"Squirrels climb trees. They do not play in _water_." Root argued back, lifting his chin defiantly. "Besides, Darkclaw isn't doing it."

"Well, once Dark gets his fur drenched it doesn't dry out for hours, now does it?" Fatefiend replied. "Besides, he's a _wildcat_. Sissies, all of 'em."

"Ferret…" Darkclaw growled warningly from where he stood safely out of reach of the lapping ocean waves.

"You're _all_ cowards." Fatefiend objected and splashed at the water moodily with his paw. Suddenly, screeching like a deranged heron, he was sprinting out of the ocean as best he could, all the while screaming: "**_Saltineyes-saltineyes-saltineyes_**!" without stopping to take a breath. Finally, he reached the part of the sand where he had left his pack, reached in and grabbed a tunic, and began furiously rubbing at his eyes.

"Who's the coward, now, exactly?" Root inquired innocently.

Fatefiend whirled on him, eyes bright red, and then shook himself violently. Salt water sprayed the wildcat and the squirrel, and both voiced their complaints rather loudly. The ferret was not finished yet, though, and charged at the squirrel, colliding with him and sending them both flying into the depths of the water located near the deeply thinking Redsplash. Needless to say, Redsplash got soaked and Root, panicking as he did not know how to swim, latched onto Fatefiend, whose own swimming skills were rather rusty, and forced the ferret under with him.

Fatefiend, not one to take kindly to death threats, intentional or not, promptly punched Root in the nose as hard as he could. After that, Root let go rather quickly and Fatefiend, confused as to which direction was up and which was down, attempted to find the surface. It took him about twenty seconds after going under to reach the surface again, and, when he did, Root had yet to surface.

"Squirrel!" he bellowed, immediately feeling guilty for punching Root. "_Squirrel_!"

"What? I'm right here." Root commented from directly behind the ferret, as he reached over and grabbed the back of Fatefiend's skull. "Turns out I can swim after all." He informed the ferret, just before forcefully dunking the ferret's head under the waves and holding it there for several seconds.

Darkclaw was about to wade out into the water in an attempt to cool off when he saw Darkwing flying in the sky. With a growl more irritated grunt than anything else, he began a quick walk towards the left. He knew that Darkwing would see and follow, so that he could give the wildcat whatever information he had brought back, and that the three idiots would not notice he was gone. The wildcat was willing to bet that they would keep busy stupidly dumping themselves underwater until one of them swallowed too much salt water and vomited all over the rest of them. _That_ would clear up their little water war rather quickly, if nothing else.

He walked for several long minutes before he deemed himself far enough away that none of the others would bother following. Darkwing descended quickly, but gracefully, and came to a silent stop as close to Darkclaw as was possible without being in range for any of the wildcat's lunges or swipes. The hawk had, obviously, relearned his lessons quickly. Darkclaw was, once again, impressed by the hawk.

"So, what news have you brought?" Darkclaw demanded quickly, in no mood this afternoon to deal with the long drawn out conversations he had previously endured with the hawk.

"Unpleasant news, I'm afraid." Darkwing replied, although he sounded, if anything, smug that Darkclaw's future was clouded. "Salamandastron is preparing for a siege."

"How does one _prepare_ for a _siege_?" Darkclaw responded. "Who has warned them of this siege of theirs?"

"The same one that's planning the siege: the Nameless One." Darkwing replied.

"That ones does _everything_ backwards."

"And, yet, he still manages to be the sole ruler of his own continent."

"It's a small one."

"And several islands." Darkwing added, "_And_ I think he's attempting to take over _this_ continent as well. He has started his invasion already, you know. Torn villages to the ground and executed several of the badger's Long Patrol hares."

"And I suppose the great Badger Lord Advigilian just decided to forget about the bodies of his creatures?" Darkclaw demanded.

"No, actually, but he's smarter than he appears. I suppose you know that the Nameless One's forces were too many in number to be kept even on his continent without over-eating the plants and animals and rendering his lands useless?"

"I know."

"Well, obviously, so does the Unnamed One, and so he sent his forces all over the land he owned, and the land he was fighting to own. The thousands at his castle are perhaps one thousandth of what he controls."

"Is there a point to this awe-inspiring story of my family's greatest enemy?" Darkclaw asked, his eyebrow rising politely and his tone quite civil. It was this civility that told Darkwing the wildcat was in the mood to kill today.

"Yes, of course. The Unnamed One has never brought all his forces together in one place that any know of. Never. His hundreds of armies have never _needed_ to gather together to overrun _anything_."

"Get to the point, if you please. I have other business to attend to, you know."

"A coast several days to the south of Salamandastron was the designated landing point of the hundreds of armies that _weren't_ already located on this continent. _That's_ how all the badger's hares died. They were caught and killed when they were found spying."

"You have ten seconds."

"The Nameless One has killed many on this continent, yes, but none of it was _impressive_. He's sent five of his armies to lay siege to Salamandastron and kill the badger lord."

"I thought the Unnamed One was content with his castle on his continent."

"He doesn't want to _keep_ Salamandastron. All he wants is the badger lord's head so he can properly terrify the beasts of this continent."

"I notice he went for Salamandastron and not Redwall."

"Ah, well, he has no current interest in Redwall. The abbey is, after all, in the middle of the forest. He could use the coast that Salamandastron's hare and badger lord guard. Better landing spot, I believe, than the one he currently uses."

"Ah." Darkclaw nodded slowly. "How far away are these five armies?"

"It's been formed into one army, though there is some dissention, I've heard, between the five generals that used to rule the separate armies." Darkwing fluttered his wings in a passable imitation of a shrug. "They are perhaps six days away, if they march quickly."

Darkclaw nodded thoughtfully. Now that he had heard the Nameless One was after the badger lord's head, the wildcat wanted to kill the badger more than ever. To do so safely, though, he would have to see to it that Redsplash was repulsed enough by the mountain to want to leave within a day or two. If the army was six days away, Darkclaw definitely did not want to be anywhere near here when the horde arrived upon the awaiting hares.

"Send word to Ijuiline that I will soon be traveling through her brother's lands." Darkclaw ordered after thinking deeply for several seconds.

"Shouldn't I just give the message to her brother?" Darkwing asked.

"Oh, yes, if you wouldn't mind being shot several times with arrows." Darkclaw replied calmly. "I'm afraid Ijuiline never told her brother that the war she declared on me was called off."

"Ah. Ijuiline it is, then."

"Yes. Good. How long will it take you to get back here?"

"A while. I'll have to cross an ocean."

"It's a small one." Darkclaw answered. "I'll expect you back in one week. Two at the most."

"To get back here in two weeks I'll barely be able to rest, let alone _eat_!" Darkwing exclaimed.

"Good, then I won't have to worry about my messages arriving late because you stopped to visit those _children_ of yours." Darkclaw responded darkly.

"_You_ were a child once." Darkwing retorted angrily.

Darkclaw smiled grimly. "Never." He corrected. "Now get flapping, hawk. You have two weeks at the most before I start to hunt down your fledglings."

"Red, what're you doing?" Fatefiend inquired, his tone oddly innocent for one holding another's head underwater.

"I'm looking, Fatefiend." Redsplash replied quietly, detachedly.

"Lookin' for what?" Fatefiend asked, removing his paws from the top of Root's skull and allowing the squirrel to shoot to the surface. Somehow Redsplash's melancholy expression had completely ruined the humor of holding the squirrel under the surface of the water.

"What do you think I would be looking for?" Redsplash replied as Root sputtered and choked and punched drunkenly at Fatefiend, who easily dodged.

"Your _sanity_, perhaps?" Root did not seem to be in the best of moods after a near drowning.

"No, no, no, Root. If she's looking for something it has to be something she wants _back_." Fatefiend remarked dryly, rolling his eyes. Root glared at him and lunged, attempting to shove him underwater and drown him. The ferret, showing surprisingly quick reflexes, managed to grab the squirrel's paw and, using Root's own momentum, send him flying several feet before sinking, with a gigantic splash, under the surface.

"You two…" Redsplash said, turning to see the ripples of Root's collision with the water splash up against her. "Really need to remember how old you are."

Fatefiend hesitated, tilting his head to the right. "Actually…" he frowned. "I can't remember…"

Redsplash rolled her eyes. "You can't remember how old you are?"

"No…strange, eh?"

"Stupid." Redsplash snapped back.

"Well, I don't know either." Root retorted angrily, still attempting to rub salt water out of his eyes. "So I would thank you to stop mocking Fatefiend for it."

"You're both idiots." Redsplash remarked grimly and began to wade towards the shore.

"Oy, Red!" Fatefiend exclaimed, "Where do you think you're goin'?"

"Out of the water, Fate. It's only interesting for so long." Redsplash answered darkly.

"Well, you haven't even been under the water! This is supposed to be your _habitat_, Red. What're you doin' just walkin' away from it?" Fatefiend called after her as she continued her quick wading.

Redsplash froze for a second and then glanced over her shoulder at the squirrel and the ferret, both neck-deep in salt water. "Isn't that what I always do?" And with that enigmatic reply she walked out of the ocean and began strolling in the direction Darkclaw had left them for a few minutes ago, though how she knew where the wildcat had gone with her back towards him the entire time no one could know.

Root scratched his chin and turned to Fatefiend, "What's wrong with 'er?" He questioned, obviously quite confused.

"Oh, who knows? She does this every once a while, getting all dramatic and broody. Don't worry though, mate, it'll pass soon enough." Fatefiend shrugged.

"You ever asked 'er what's botherin' her?" Root questioned curiously.

"Once or twice. All I remember is that she threatened my life and hit me over the head anytime I asked her. So, go ahead, ask her."

"Perhaps not."

"Yes," Fatefiend agreed with a laugh, "Perhaps not."

Darkclaw found Redsplash walking towards him with an irritated scowl across her features and dripping ocean water, leaving a quickly fading path of drying droplets behind her. He had watched Darkwing take flight barely a minute before, and knew that it was possible Redsplash had been watching the meeting, if she were this close. Judging by her expression, though, Darkclaw knew she had not. Besides, knowing the otter as well as he did he knew that if Redsplash had seen the meeting she would have idiotically come running into their conversation screaming at Darkclaw about betraying them all and the like. For one who had managed to survive the Nameless One's slavery tactics, the otter had severely faulty survival tactics.

"What were you doing?" The otter demanded bluntly. "Why'd you leave us?"

"My business is not yours, Redsplash." Darkclaw returned calmly. "If you wish to reach the mountain by nightfall we should start now. It does not appear far, but we all know appearances can be blatant lies."

Redsplash stared at him for a while, a light frown mirroring equally as light suspicions in her eyes. "Yes," she remarked quietly, "Yes, they can be."

"Look, ferret, there is a _trail_ for you to follow. A _trail_, and you still cannot track?" Came Root obviously amazed voice from a far distance, traveling easily across the sandy landscape.

"Well, forgive _me_, squirrel for being a brainless idiot!" Quipped Fatefiend from the same direction and distance as the squirrel.

"You're forgiven." Replied the smug-sounding squirrel.

With an audible sigh on Redsplash's part and an inaudible one on Darkclaw's, the two of them began to stroll towards the bickering beasts. They found them easily and, muttering only a few words, began moving as a group towards the mountain. There was not much talk on anyone's part, as Darkclaw was being his usual silent self, Redsplash was contemplating something no one but herself knew about, the ferret was busy keeping himself entertained with five seashells and a rock he had found on the beach, and the squirrel had finally found himself time to think about all that he happened and all that he had not known he knew.

The moon hung heavy and shimmering in a dangerously dark sky, accompanied by the faded glinting of the minuscule stars. Ashen light from the moon's glow brought illumination to the otherwise lightless landscape, and gave definition and reality to the lifeless sand and the few plants that could exist in this sand-ruled climate. The wind moved lightly, as if it barely had the energy to summon to itself its' very breath, noticed by few and disturbing even less. Nothing seemed to stir here, nothing but the mountain's inhabitants a few minutes quick march to the south…nothing had happened here for several weeks, if not months. It was peaceful here, and those that visited were normally intimidated into awed silence when they came. Nothing changed here that was worth noticing, and nothing lived here that was worth breathing…which was why the very absurdity of tonight's actions were so alarming shocking: because this was a place of peace…or had been.

Redsplash had been the one to decide not to ask for shelter from Salamandastron's inhabitants tonight, but to spend one last night out on the sandy beaches. Darkclaw had objected, but he had not been heeded. Fatefiend, perhaps to prove he was worth _something_ to his brand-new friend Root, had spent nearly a full hour collecting the driftwood along the beach. It had amused them all to watch her travel into the foreboding darkness of the night and then, minutes later, come sprinting towards them, eyes alight and paws clutching at pieces of wood longer than he was tall. The fire the ferret had created was a roaring beacon they knew the mountain hares and the badger lord would see, but none of them bothered to care. What could the badger lord do to them?

They sat around the blazing fire; barely able to see each other much less anything beyond the circle of light, and the ferret and otter exchanged stories full of memories and ironic endings about their previous days in the Nameless One's castle. Their tales of failure and near-death experiences were told with such condescending tones that they sent Root into fits of laughter that nearly killed him, and even Darkclaw sometimes smiled, amused at their idiocy if not their story-telling capabilities. It was an oddly peaceful moment for their traveling troupe of terror, and none of them saw the ending of what little peace they managed to create coming.

"Right so then I walk in and find Redsplash attempting to devour her own shoulder-" Fatefiend began with a grin and a laugh.

"I _was not_ you, liar!" Redsplash broke in, offended. "I was _attempting_ to put my shoulder back in place with my _teeth_."

"Who's telling this story, Red? You or _me_?" Fatefiend returned, "If I say you were trying to eat your own shoulder, you were trying to eat you own shoulder. Now stop talking and let me finish."

"You're a liar." Redsplash snapped and then turned to Root. "He's a liar." She informed him.

"_She's_ the liar." Fatefiend remarked. "Anyway, so I tell her, rather truthfully, that eating her own shoulder is a rather stupid way to attempt to heal, and she just makes fun of my mask, which, as I've already explained to all of you, was a rather touchy subject as it was a mask of _mourning_." This last part he said pointedly at Redsplash who glared back at him, not really angry but feigning it quite well.

"How was I supposed to know? Did you _tell_ me? **_No_**!"

"So I go towards her planning on, you know, helping her with her dislocated shoulder, and she tries to _bite_ me! What kind of creature attempts to first eat herself and then tries to take a bite out of a _ferret_?"

"I like ferret meat." Darkclaw rumbled idly. "Nice and juicy."

Fatefiend stared at in complete and total shock that turned slowly to a look of one critically affronted. "_Dark_! No one here wanted to _hear_ that, least of all _me_!"

"Just the truth, ferret. Would you rather I say that ferret tastes like rotting duck-flesh?" Darkclaw demanded idly.

"Well…no…" Fatefiend agreed reluctantly.

"There you go, then." The wildcat remarked calmly.

Suddenly, in a move that completely shattered the edgy peace of their fireside talk, a hare bounded out of the darkness and pressed the tip of a spear to Darkclaw's throat. "No one moves or I kill you're leader!" The female hare shouted officially, glaring dangerously at all of them. The bit of sandwich Root had been about to eat fell out of his abruptly limp paws and dropped to the sandy ground.

"Oy!" Fatefiend called in loud objection, "What makes you think he's our leader?"

"He's not?" She questioned suspiciously, while pressing the spear tip harder against the wildcat's neck. Darkclaw growled quietly, almost softly, as he gave the hare a look that said he could clearly snap this spear in two far before she could stab him with it hard enough to give him any kind of serious injury. The hare did not notice and did not care.

"Well, no…I don't think so…" Fatefiend seemed puzzled by this. "I think it's…Red, are you our leader?"

"Depends." The otter remarked calmly, neither the ferret nor the otter very concerned about the spear to Darkclaw's throat.

"On what?" Root questioned, only a bit more nervous than either of the others.

"If that hare has any armed friends in the darkness." The otter responded with a careless shrug as she leaned over, swooped the bit of sandwich Root had dropped out of the sand, and ate it.

Somehow the hare managed to bound clear over the fire and land with her spear forced against Redsplash's neck. "As you can see," The hare's voice was calm but malicious, "I don't not need any _friends_ for you four."

Redsplash sighed. "We're not here to attack your mountain, hare. We only came here to see if all those legends you hear about the place are true to not."

"I assure you, otter," the hare drawled darkly, "They are, and you can even see for yourselves in a minute. The Badger Lord wanted you four taken to the mountain so he can question you as to what you are doing on _our_ shores setting fire to _our_ wood."

"As prisoners to be interrogated you mean?" Redsplash hissed viciously.

"I suggested executing you like the vermin-scum you are, but Lord Advigilian said he wanted you alive." The hare hissed backed.

"We were going to go there anyway, hare, and if you wait until the morning we'll answer your Badger Lord's questions without any trouble, but we _will not_ go as your _prisoners_." There were a few times Redsplash had been this angry that Fatefiend could remember, and, each time, a couple of beasts had always ended up dead.

"Do you think so?" The hare questioned. "Well, I do not, and the Badger Lord was only interested in the wildcat and the ferret who looks so much like his Unnamed enemy-" at this point Fatefiend paled considerably "-not in an otter who travels with the vermin. I could kill you."

"I don't think your _kind_ has the courage to kill one of mine." Redsplash growled, practically snarling now.

The hare pulled the spear back, as if about to push it through Redsplash's neck, and pandemonium broke out. With a roar, Darkclaw leapt to his feet and flew across the fire, headed quickly towards the hare. Fatefiend pulled a flaming branch out of the fire and jumped towards the hare, waving it above his head in blazing contrast to the lifeless black sky above. Root lunged at Redsplash, attempting to push her out of the way, and Redsplash fell completely over in a reflexive attempt at the threat to her life. Needless to say, none of them achieved their goals.

Darkclaw and Root collided in midair, before crashing into the hare and sending all three of them flying through the night, away from the fire. Fatefiend tripped over Redsplash and went sprawling, neatly lighting his own tunic on fire. Screaming as if it was his skin and not his clothing alight, he rolled over and over in the sand in furious attempts to kill the fire he had created. Redsplash, when tripped upon, was sent rolling towards the fire and only barely managed to keep herself from ending up in the flames.

Several seconds went by as Darkclaw and Root removed themselves from the confusing muddle of hare, wildcat, and squirrel that they had landed in and as Fatefiend, ending the flames, lay there panting in relief. Redsplash sat up and looked around as the squirrel and wildcat pulled free from the hare and each other and rolled away. She was the first up and also the first to see the hare, run through cleanly on her own spear.

"Oh, lovely." Redsplash commented darkly. "I see we've made a _great_ first impression."

"What do you--ooooh…" Fatefiend broke off mid-sentence as he saw the evidence of the gruesome demise of the hare. "Well…better 'er than us, I suppose."

"We'll have to get rid of the body so the Badger Lord lets us in his mountain." Redsplash remarked darkly as she stood up completely and kicked angrily at the sand.

"Oh and do you think he just won't notice when his spy never returns?" Darkclaw retorted, just as angrily.

"Well, what _else_ are we going to do, Darkclaw? Return the body to him with our sincerest apologies?" Redsplash demanded.

"It's not like it was our fault." Root observed. "She stabbed herself with the spear. We had no part in that."

"Right. It wasn't our fault, but how are we going to explain that to the Badger Lord?" Redsplash hissed, furious that they had come all this way to see the inside of the legendary Salamandastron and some stupid hare stabbing herself was going to keep them out of it.

"The Badger Lord Advigilian is excepting a siege." Darkclaw informed them all cryptically without ever mention how he knew this. "There is a chance that he will believe we did not murder the hare, but it is a very small one."

"There you go then," Fatefiend remarked with a shrug. "Luck's always been with us when it comes to matters like this. We just walk up and say we found 'er dead on our way over to the mountain."

"Brilliant plan, Fate. How about _you_ go do that and the rest of us'll just stay behind and watch?" Redsplash demanded acidly, shaking her head in agitated irritation. "You are such an idiot sometimes."

Fatefiend scowled, "Fine, then, Red. I _will_." And with that he stalked over to the dead hare, pulled the spear out of her lifeless body, scooped the dead hare up, and began to stalk towards the mountain.

"He's not going to do it." Redsplash told Root and Darkclaw confidentially. "He'll get a couple minutes away, turn around, and run screaming back at us because he heard a twig snap."

"If I heard a twig snap around 'ere I'd be a bit frightened too." Root retorted, "Seeing as how the only wood is driftwood."

"Then it'll somethin' else that spooks him." Redsplash corrected herself with an angry glare at the squirrel. "The point is: he'll come runnin' back soon enough."

"May I suggest we attempt to keep the ferret in our sights?" Darkclaw suggested darkly. "He might get lost if he tries to run anywhere tonight. It is a very dark night."

"Not too dark." Root replied, "The moon is shining, at least."

"We should still keep an eye on him." Darkclaw argued.

"_Fine_, let's _go_." Redsplash snapped and stalked after the ferret who was quickly disappearing into the darkness.

"You should try not to get so angry." Darkclaw commented mildly. "Emotions lead you to an early death, you know."

"I'll lead _you_ to an early death." Redsplash muttered darkly.

Darkclaw snorted in disbelief and followed the otter as they followed Fatefiend across the sand towards Salamandastron, which loomed imposingly as an even darker shade of black against the gigantic curtain of bluish black that was the night sky.

If Redsplash had been given the opportunity to bet on Fatefiend's likelihood of carrying the hare's body to the mountain everything she had would have been against him even bothering to deposit the hare in front of the entrance. Luck had always been with her on such things, but, for some reason, it betrayed her now. Fatefiend was spotted about half a minute away from the mountain, and by the time he was nearing the entrance a full regiment of hares and the Badger Lord, Advigilian, himself were standing there waiting for him.

Darkclaw, Redsplash, and Root all stood about a minute's walk away from the entrance, having decided, upon mutual agreement, that allowing the badger to get a clear glimpse of Darkclaw would only send the badger into a mad fit. As the Warheart family was infamous for it's fondness of badger meat, badgers typically did not want their prince anywhere near them. Root had wanted to catch up with Fatefiend and take the body from him, saying that the badger would most likely welcome a squirrel over a ferret, but had made no move to approach Fatefiend. So they stood, waiting for Fatefiend to be frightened into dropping the carcass and running, watching with quiet smirks of expectation as Fatefiend approached.

Fatefiend called something up to the badger lord and stepped into the light. As soon as the glow of the torches touched the hare's body, Redsplash felt it in her gut. Her intuition was rarely wrong, and it was screaming at her that something very, very, bad was going to happen. The Badger Lord's eyes went from questioning brown to malicious red and Redsplash, more than any of the others, knew exactly what that meant. Root said later that she was screaming even before the badger began to reach for Fatefiend, but Redsplash did not ever know for certain if that was true.

The hare's body dropped lifelessly to the ground as the badger grabbed the ferret, who let out a strangled, shocked shout, and the badger's paws wrapped around Fatefiend's neck and skull. And then a loud _snap_ echoed in Redsplash's ears that she could not have possibly heard and Fatefiend, too, dropped without any form of life to the ground, the sand flying upwards as if even the ground screamed out in protest at this act.

For a second that lasted far longer than an eternity, time froze. Nothing seemed real because nothing seemed right. Fatefiend would be getting up any second, Redsplash knew, because there was no way-_no way_-Fatefiend could be dead. That snap was a twig. The badger had dropped him. No. _No_. **_No_**.

Now it was moving. Darkclaw lunged forward. Root started sprinting. But Redsplash was moving past them, unaware that she was even moving. Her eyes glowed red as she flew across the sand, running because she didn't want it to be true…running for reasons she refused to acknowledge and for reasons she did not understand. The sand flew and the moon glowed, and Fatefiend did not move from where he lay in the sand.

The hares relaxed. The weapons lowered. The badger did not move. Redsplash left Darkclaw and Root behind, both of whom were faster runners than she had ever been. The badger lifted his head and looked at the approaching trio. Furiously blazing red eyes met their twin as the two shared a look, blazing flashes of murderous red in a black-and-sand night. And then the badger lord gathered the body of his dead hare into his gigantic arms and reached for the boulder to close off the entrance. It was then Redsplash realized she was screaming, and she could not stop it, even though she was running quickly out of breath.

It took less than seven seconds for the badger to close the door, and it took less than nineteen for Redsplash to reach Fatefiend. She fell to her knees, skidding through the sand, and grabbed him, pulling him towards her. His brilliant blue eyes were open, and he stared at her with the expression of someone mildly shocked and disbelieving. It was the expression he had always worn when Redsplash had called him a particularly nasty name. That thought was, for some reason, unbelievably painful. Redsplash had been tortured by the best torturers of her time. She had been burned, frozen, beaten, stabbed, tricked, tormented, sliced, clubbed, and everything else known to anyone who had ever experienced physical pain. But of all that incredibly pain, this one memory came the closest to breaking her mind than any of their pathetic attempts ever had and that made no sense.

For some reason she couldn't get air. It was like someone was strangling her without touching her. She couldn't breathe. It hurt. Something in her lungs was ripping apart. Nothing had ever hurt like this. Why did it hurt so much? Screams tore from her and she did not know why. Unbelievably agonizing pain dug its' poisoned claws into her gut and shredded apart her insides. Pain like this could not be lived through. Something like this should not exist…pain like this was too much…too much. And she couldn't breathe. And it hurt.

Darkclaw flew past her, throwing himself on the boulder. Roars that would have sent Redsplash, much as she liked to believe she was incredibly brave, fleeing away if she had been able to comprehend it filled her ears and drowned out her thoughts. Something was wrong with the wildcat too. He was furious, and he had never even _liked_ Fatefiend. Fatefiend had never saved his life. Fatefiend had never set his broken bones. Fatefiend had never helped him plot a rebellion. Darkclaw's claws were leaving long scores in the heavy rock of the boulder, and the wildcat was still roaring. Nothing seemed right, and it was so hard to breathe.

"Stop it!" Redsplash screamed, unable to take the noise, unable to take the anger in Darkclaw's roars that mirrored the fury growing in her soul. "**_Stop it_**!"

Darkclaw turned to her, furious green eyes flashing murderously. "You're _friend_ is dead, Redsplash. Do you not want vengeance?"

"He's not dead!" Redsplash roared, standing up quickly but not too quickly as she set Fatefiend carefully in the sand. "**_He's not dead_**!"

"Then why isn't he _breathing_, otter? Why has his heart _stopped beating_?" The wildcat hissed viciously.

With another scream, of hopeless disbelief and futile anger, Redsplash threw herself at Darkclaw, wanting to kill and wanting to die and not wanting anything but to go back in time just so she could say goodbye. She needed something, and she didn't know what. She wanted to rip Darkclaw apart and see the blood, and she wanted Fatefiend to sit up and tell them it was all a joke, and she wanted to go back to her family that she had refused to think about for all these long seasons, curl up in her mother's lap, and tell her about their terrible nightmare, because this could not be real. It was not real. Fatefiend was not dead and Darkclaw had no right to speak such lies. She wanted to kill the wildcat. _Needed_ to kill the wildcat. Or at least to see the blood she could draw from him. That's all she wanted. To see physical pain to make the mental pain make sense. That's all. She just wanted to see blood, and Darkclaw had lots of it to spare.

But Darkclaw did not care what she needed or what she thought she needed from him. He grabbed her by the arm and flung her through the air. She landed hard in the sand and pushed herself up, looking up at him with a snarl of revulsion and defiance written across her features. "Denial is a waste of emotion, Redsplash. Get to the anger. We'll need the anger." Darkclaw growled. And then he was leaving, stalking away across the sand, leaving her there with Fatefiend who was not-couldn't be-dead.

Redsplash scrambled furiously across the sand, reaching Fatefiend's body quickly. She had never been one to hug or embrace her only friend, and Fatefiend had never been one to appreciate anything like that either, which was why it was so strange that Redsplash could not let go of him now. His head was at such an odd angle to his body…he looked so helpless and so naïve. He had never been that in life, not really…perhaps in comparison to some, but he had never been quite so helpless and ignorant as he pretended. And he was so cold now…he had always hated the cold. Redsplash remembered the trip to Darkclaw's northern realm had how the ferret had worn so many cloaks he had barely been able to walk. Fatefiend had always hated the cold…it seemed so unfair that he was freezing now.

Redsplash could not remember the last time she cried, but now seemed like an appropriate time. She had never let herself cry in the Nameless One's capture, though the tears had often threatened to overwhelm her for reasons far simpler than the loss of the only friend she remembered ever having in her life since enslavement. Now was a time she could cry, because Fatefiend deserved it. But now she couldn't, and she hated it. Hated herself. All she could do was sit there, gasping at the air that seemed to have left the world with Fatefiend, and make odd whimpering noises reminiscent of a lost cub in a corner, watching horrors beyond imagining and unable to blink. It was terrible, and it was nothing.

Blue eyes stared at her in confusion, as if asking why she seemed so sad. His expression was too familiar, even if his head was facing nearly straight behind him. She had seen that exact expression on his face so many times. He was dead, but he seemed to be alive. She couldn't change anything, but she would have changed everything if she could simply have brought him back. The badger that had killed him had not known him. Fatefiend had not known the beast that had killed him. It was always supposed to be his father. Fatefiend had told her once that it should be his father, because, after all, his father had given him life. Who better to take it away? But Fatefiend had been killed by a stranger for a misunderstanding Redsplash could have prevented. This was her fault.

"Fate…" Redsplash whispered, moving Fatefiend's cooling body so she could look into his lifeless eyes. "I did this to you…I'm so sorry, Fate. I-I didn't know…I would have gone instead of you. I _should_ have gone instead of you. It's all my fault." She was breathing in sharp hisses now that burned her lungs and throat. "It's all _my_ fault."

"Redsplash…" Came a voice and for half a second of astounding joy and relief Redsplash thought it was Fatefiend, but Fatefiend's corpse was in her paws, and Root was talking to her. "Redsplash, listen to me-"

"_Go away_!" Redsplash screamed at him, standing, carrying Fatefiend's body, which had seemed to weigh so much more when in possession of life. "**_Go away_** _and leave us alone_!"

"Redsplash, this wasn't-"

"_Stop it_!" Redsplash cried. "**_Go away, Root_**!"

"This wasn't your kill, Redsplash. You didn't do this." Root looked like he was carrying some immense burden that was slowly forcing the life out of him. "Red, this wasn't _your_ doing."

"Red…he was the first to call me Red…" Redsplash looked down at the body in her arms.

"Red, look-"

"**_Don't call me that_**!" Redsplash screamed, sounding frantic and furious and insane. "_Don't ever call me that **again**_!"

"Redsplash…" Root looked defeated now…beaten. There was nothing he could do, and there was nothing he could change. He knew, though he could not remember it, exactly what it was like to feel like Redsplash did. The commiseration was incredibly painful itself, and Redsplash did not deserve the pain she was feeling. Root was not sure she could handle it, but, if anything, she needed her own mind now. There was nothing in Root's to ease the pain, except for an oddly aggressive memory of a recipe to some kind of poison.

"**_Go away_**…just _go away_, Root…" Redsplash hit her knees, unable, for a reason that Root knew quite well, to stand against everything anymore. Fatefiend's broken neck twisted oddly, and a shriek of dark emotions most kept locked away deep inside until something like this happened pierced the night, ripping from Redsplash's throat as a kneeing wail full of things even she could never hope to understand. Root shivered, and knew he had to leave. There was nothing he could do…not anymore…not after this.

"It wasn't your fault…" Root muttered quietly, turned, and left quickly, easily tracking Darkclaw's path. He needed to find the wildcat. He needed to tell him something he was completely sure the wildcat already knew.

Redsplash watched him go and then transferred her gaze to Fatefiend's astounded blue eyes. They were still bright, though lifeless, and they hurt to look at. "It _is_ my fault…" Redsplash murmured quietly. "I killed you…Fate, I killed you…"


	6. Chapter Six

((Ok, so this chapter is finished. Finally. Good. Sorry it took so long, but I lost interest in this story for many long days. The only thing that really got me to start writing on this again was sheer boredom and a blank computer screen. Anyway, after this awkward chapter, things should get better. Really. We can hope, right? Oh, and, this chapter is about five hundred words longer than what I usually write, because I wanted to get all this…stuff…out of the way so I could move on. So, if it seems longer, it's only because it is.))

"_Red…"_ Fatefiend's voice chimed in her ears. "_You're wounded."_

"Stop that." Redsplash ordered Fatefiend's body aloud. She was walking. Where she was going, she did not know. When she would stop was beyond her comprehension. She was searching for a suitable place to bury Fatefiend, but where was a suitable place to end a friendship? Where did one bury a friend who was only dead because of a stupid mistake? How could she kill a friendship that had lasted far longer than anything else ever had in her life?

"_Is it just me…or was that a mood swing?"_ Again he spoke without a pulse or movement of his mouth.

"Come on, Fate. Stop it." Redsplash would have been angered at the pleading tone in her voice…if she cared about anything anymore.

"_You're wounded."_

"You're not alive anymore, Fate. You can't just keep talking when you're dead." Redsplash nearly slipped in the sand, but kept going. She had something to do, and if she fell now she would never get up again.

"_Now is not the time to be sarcastic."_

Now Redsplash realized what was happening. Fatefiend wasn't talking to her at all. It was just memories. Memories of all the things Fatefiend had said, swirling up to carry on a conversation with her. She decided to ignore it.

"_Why don't you like the sea, Red?"_

No answer.

"**_Why don't you like the sea, Red?"_**

Again, Redsplash refused to answer, though the volume hurt her mind.

"**_WHY DON'T YOU LIKE THE SEA, RED?"_**

"_Stop it_!" She screamed, "**_Stop it_**! It's not _fair_!"

"_Now is not the time to be sarcastic."_

"**_Stop it_**!" Redsplash cried. "What are you _doing here_? Why are you **_here_**?"

"_To make sure you're alive."_

"I'm alive. I'm _alive_." Redsplash's voice was an odd whimper for someone who could feel no sorrow. "You're the dead one, Fate. You're dead…"

"_I don't want to **die**!"_

"I know…I know. I'm sorry, Fate. I didn't mean. I didn't want to kill you…"

"_You liar."_

"No! I really…I didn't mean it! I didn't want you to go!"

"_I'm not that stupid, Red."_

"It's the _truth_!"

"_Right_."

"Stop it, Fate. You know I didn't mean it. You _have_ to know that."

"_Do you know what my father will do to me if he ever finds me?"_

"He won't find you, Fate. I promise he'll never find you. I won't let him find you."

"_Darkness…"_

"I didn't want you to die…I didn't want you to die."

"_Doesn't bother me."_

"What? _What_ doesn't bother you?"

"_It's not healthy being a loner."_

"_You _left _me_. I didn't want you to leave me. How _could_ you? Why _did_ you? Were you really that mad at me?" Redsplash's words were angry, but she could not find the will or the strength to be angry. All that she had left was a gaping hole were her strength and will used to be. She was completely empty now, and all she had was Fatefiend's cold corpse and his voice in her head repeating things he had said before and would never say again.

"_I think I really hate you right now."_

"_I'm **sorry**_!"

"_Right_."

"I am…I really am, Fate. Why don't you believe me?"

"_Aw, come on Red, you're gonna make it vomit."_

"Stop _it_! Stop _repeating_! Stop _talking_! You're _dead_! You _have to stop_!" Redsplash was screaming at a dead body now, and could not understand why this seemed like such a pointless idea.

"_The screaming was a bit much."_

"Stop talking! I don't want to _hear you anymore_! I don't want to _think_ about you, and I don't want you to _exist_ anymore! Just _leave me **alone**_!"

"_Oh, yes, that hurt."_

"This isn't normal…you're supposed to be gone. This _isn't normal_!"

"_If I was normal, why would I be **your** friend?"_

"I killed you. I can't be your friend. You have to find another friend, Fate. You can't be friends with the one that killed you."

"_You have no idea how acutely depressing it to realize that."_

"Stop it…Fate, this hurts. Just…stop talking to me, all right?"

"'_Right_."

Redsplash was left in quiet bitter peace for a very long time. It felt like ages, but might have been minutes. She did not know how long it was, but somehow walking along carrying the corpse of your only friend in complete and thought-filled silence was far worse than having an insane conversation with a dead friend. Loneliness and sorrow made very bad company. She wanted Fatefiend back.

"Fate…?"

"_Quiet."_

"Fate, come back. I want you to keep talking."

"_Oh, really?"_

"It's…it's worse without you."

"_Ouch."_

"Yes…" Redsplash agreed, laughing a high-pitched freakish laugh at this. "Yes, 'ouch.'"

"_Do we run now?"_

"What?"

"_Why don't you like the sea, Red?"_

Redsplash shivered, even Fatefiend's memory was intuitive. Or perhaps it was just incredibly obvious that she was refusing even to look at the sea. "I can't tell you that."

"_Really?"_

"I can't do it. I won't."

"_Why don't you like the sea, Red?"_

"I _can't_ **_tell you_**. It's nothing anyway. Same reason you never liked castles. Especially your father's."

"_Torture chamber or just the dungeons, do you think?"_

"What?"

"_Quiet…"_

"What?"

"_Goodbye._"

"Are you leaving? You can't leave me alone again, Fate. You _can't_ do that."

"_Really?"_

"Yes. Really."

"_Goodbye."_

And then he was gone, and she was alone. Again. For a second, Redsplash thought it was over. After all, mourning was hard enough without having the voice of the dead ringing in your mind. Losing your only friend was bad enough without going insane along with it. Perhaps Fatefiend was finally gone, and she could mourn him in isolation. But as soon as she thought his name, she knew any hopes of isolated mourning were futile. Memories caught her and dragged her back.

"_Red…Red…" _

"_Fate. Why are you here?"_

"_To make sure you're alive. Ouch. That's gonna sting." _

"_Oh, really? I hadn't noticed."_

"_Now is not the time to be sarcastic."_

"_On the contrary, sarcasm is one of the few things keeping me from turning bloodthirsty and biting your paw right off." _

"_Look Redsplash, the rebellion is scheduled for two weeks from today-"_

"_Wait a minute…You scheduled the rebellion?"_

…

"_What? What are you doing?"_

"_Getting you out of here. Without fifty of the wildcat's beasts following us."_

"_What a bright idea. Did you bring any weapons?"_

"_Yes. Here."_

"_Come on."_

…

"_What was that for?"_

"_We have to leave now."_

"_What?"_

"_We abandon Darkclaw here. Now. Today."_

"_Why? I thought you said you wanted to get somewhere warmer before we left."_

"_I lied. We have to leave now. If Darkclaw loses control of those rats and they attack us, who is going to run the ship after we kill them? You?"_

"_Oh…right…I guess I see…"_

"_Good. Come on, if we turn around now and go around him we might be able to get away."_

"_All right…"_

…

"_Red, Red, are you alive?" _

"_Uh, what do ya want?"_

"_I brought you lunch. I was going to bring you down some of that stew but I ate it."_

"_I wouldn't expect anything else."_

"_You've been asleep for a day, by the way. The crew wanted to toss you overboard because you kept waking them up, what with your screaming, and-"_

"_I was screaming?"_

"_Well, yes, but mostly it was death threats. Once you were screaming about someone named Laflen, but I don't know who-"_

"_Damn. I hate this."_

"_Anyway, as I was saying, the crew wanted to toss you overboard and Darkclaw and Wello got into this huge argument and, uh, Darkclaw tossed Wello off the boat. He died."_

"_I bet he did. He didn't look like a swimmer."_

"_Well, he wasn't but there was also this huge fish that ate him. You missed that too, Red. The fish was huge." _

"_I've seen huge fish before. I don't need to see them again."_

"_All right…Well, I've got to get back up there. Ever since Wello died and Eade took over they've needed Darkclaw to shout the orders, because Eade can't scream at all, and I have to cook because Eade used to be the cook. I'll bring you down something else after dinner."_

…

"_Red! Walk slower! You walk too fast."_

"_You run too slow."_

"_Red, I don't think Darkclaw's gonna start a war."_

"_And why do you think that?"_

"_Because if he was he wouldn't have let us see the squirrel. And there was either a weasel or a ferret behind me the whole time. Darkclaw's a manipulator. He controls everything or nothing. Those beasts wouldn't have gotten anywhere near us if Darkclaw didn't want them to."_

"_I think you overestimate Darkclaw's brains."_

"_I think you overestimate yourself and underestimate everyone else. Darkclaw let them get here because he wants you to think that he's planning to start a war."_

"_I don't underestimate everyone, and why is it so important what I think?"_

"_Because out of the two of us you're the one that has to be right. Your opinions matters the most because you automatically think you're right and everyone else is wrong. You gonna get us both killed if you keep this up, Red. As far as I know I'm your only friend so I'm gonna be the first to die, and I don't want to die!"_

"_Coward. I'm not afraid of death."_

…

"Not afraid of death." Redsplash murmured to herself, looking down listlessly at the corpse she was carrying in numb arms and shaking paws. "I'm not afraid of death."

"_Not even of your own_?" It was Fatefiend's voice, but it wasn't something he had ever said. Redsplash knew that as well as she knew that someday she would die and, hopefully, not ever see Fatefiend again. Because where she was going after death was not going to be a beautiful place of the Dark Forest. It was going to a brutal and vicious place, and not a place Fatefiend deserved to be.

"Never my own. No…never my own." Redsplash replied distantly, trudging along with the dull steady paces belonging to the hopeless and the dying.

"_You're afraid of death though_."

"Am not." Redsplash argued blankly.

"_You were afraid of my death. When you figured out I was dead, you were afraid. You're afraid of the others dying too. You don't want to be alone. Of all creatures, I figured you would want to be alone more than even that old hermit we stole the wine from last season_."

"I don't care if I'm alone."

"_Lying still, Redsplash? After nearly all our lives and my death, you're still lying to me? What do you think I am, an idiot? Besides, now that I'm dead I know perfectly well what happened in your life. One of the bonuses of being dead, you see. And what a sad, pathetic life you've led, too. Why didn't you ever tell me, Red? About your past?_"

"Because it was weak, Fatefiend. And stop talking to me if you're dead."

"_You didn't want me to go away when your mind was using my voice. You don't want me to go away now. Did I mention I can read your thoughts as well? It's rather interesting. Put that dead thing down, Red. That's disgusting._"

"It's _your_ body."

"_What? Oh, well, that changes things. So, let's have ourselves a chat about the old days. Would you like that?_"

"No."

"_Eh, you don't know what you want. Anyway, so…uh-oh."_

"What?"

"_Hey. Hey! Leggo of me! I'm **talkin'** to my **mourning** friend, here. Hey! **Stop that**! Where do you think you're taking me, eh? **Let me GO**!_"

"Fate? What's happening?"

"_Stop that! Will you **wait your turn**? I don't care about some **life threatening issue of yours**! Your stupid abbey dwellers will have learn about playing with swords the **hard way**, all right? I'm **talking**!"_

"Fatefiend. What's going on?"

"_You're doing **what**? You can't **make me** stop talking! Make the **hedgehog** stop talking! **He's** been going on for **hours**! Whadda ya mean **mortal danger**? Do this look like the type of ferret to **care** about such things? Leggo of me!"_

"What's happening, Fate?"

"_Oh, some stupid mouse. I can't really aruge with 'em, Red, he's got this gigantic sword and he looks pretty serious. **Stop pulling my ankle**! Well, looks like I'm gonna have to stop talking, Red. Wait…hold on…_"

"What?"

"_Oh, damn. Promise me you'll get in lots of near death experiences in the future, all right? Oh, and about your mind, will you **stop **playing around with that thing? It's **fragile**, Red. Anyway, I can only talk to you when you're in terrible danger or something, so throw yourselves into battles nonstop. I don't want to be alone here with the mice and the hedgehogs, Red. They're **heroes**. Oh, and the other mousie says to leave the mountain of Salamandastron at once! He means it too. He's waving that sword of his around an' everything. Anyway. Bye._"

And he was gone _again_, and this time Redsplash could not even understand what he had been doing there in the first place. Her mind was rushing in suicidal spirals while her legs kept moving in meaningless steps forward. All Redsplash wanted was to understand and that was so far beyond her now it stung with the fire of bitter mockery.

She stopped walking before she fell, but she when she did fall she fell rather awkwardly, as she refused to do anything but set Fatefiend's body down as gently as if it was made of glass and cloud. For some reason, after falling, standing became only an idea, and an idea as impossible as bringing Fatefiend back to life. Hallucinations and memories ran rampant in her breaking mind, and everything that made any type of sense was complete and total madness. Redsplash curled into a ball and damned the world with all the breath she could force into lungs, who currently wished to just give in and stop.

Her heart beat furiously in her ears, and her blood veins seemed to burn. Eyes, red and green as bloodstained grass, stared blankly at what she could see beyond the ball of herself that she had created. Nothing seemed to matter because nothing made sense. Who was Fatefiend, anyway? Who was she? What was she doing here, and why was she not letting herself remember anything? Oh, yes, she knew what she was doing, but, then, she had done it her entire life. Ever since she could remember, she had been sending the painful things away. Where, she never could quite understand, but she sent them away until she was ready to deal with them in tormenting bits and painful pieces. Now, though, everything seemed far too painful and nothing could be remembered.

There was no possible way to tell how long she lay there: a useless lump of twitching otter surrounded by apathy and silence. Eternity seemed far too quick and a second far too long. Time itself had no meaning, as it was just another method of torture. Forbidding herself memory, yet remembering just the same. It was dangerous, because it was peaceful, and all the peace she remembered had always exploded furiously into betrayal and agony and bitterness. Mind-breaking thoughts raced past, with no time to recognize them but all the time in the world to understand what they were saying. She was dying, and she knew it. There was a part of something inside her blowing itself apart and feasting on the fragile remnants. Something inside her was devouring itself and as it left her, Redsplash oddly began to feel as if somehow everything was going to be all right in the end. All she had to do was hunt down that bastard badger and all his little hares and rip them apart so slowly that they could feel the exact screaming, aching, burning, freezing, ripping, searing, angry, bitter pain inside her that was tearing her apart. All she had to do was drown herself in their screams and their grief and their rewarding death and everything would heal in the end. That's all she had to do, really. Vengeance was such a bittersweet thing, but, as whatever it was inside her killed itself viciously off, Redsplash found it to be the only beautiful thing in a hideous world.

Somehow, Redsplash sat up and began to dig. At first it was unapparent if she was digging her own grave or Fatefiend's, but as time rolled vindictively by, Redsplash gave up on her suicidal thoughts. What death could she bring herself, anyway? She could stab herself with her dagger and splatter blackish red liquid all over the ground, but what point in that could be found, besides the one at the end of the dagger? Yes, she could cause a violet end to her bitter life herself, but wouldn't it be so much better if someone else did it for her? Yes. That was the way it should happen. Fatefiend was killed by the badger, so Redsplash would be, too. Of course, she would have to make it so that the badger was sure to die right after she was. There was no way the badger could be allowed to live after this. No. No understandable reason that badger should be allowed life. Dealing two deserved deaths was going to be rather tricky, but Redsplash had faced far more difficult problems in her life. Never, though, without Fatefiend, but Redsplash could do this by herself. What kind of an idiot couldn't manage to kill themselves properly, anyway? Had anyone who truly wished for death ever failed?

It was only after Redsplash had spent nearly an hour digging with her paws to create a proper grave for Fatefiend that she realized where it was she had chosen to bury him. Salamandastron was barely a lump in the distance, so far had she walked, and she was kneeling on a cliff that would have been perfect to throw herself off of, if she had chosen to kill herself now. It was only now she realized she was not standing on sand, but on grass whose roots had torn apart the flesh on her paws when she had dug through it. Fatefiend lay on his back, his eyes staring at her as if watching a monster. Something was wrong, of course, but wasn't that always the case?

She lifted him, never standing, and carefully placed him in the deep grave she had created. And then, moving automatically now, she began to push the soil back in. It was when the soil covered his face away completely that something strange happened. A pressure began to build behind her eyes, and something burned there, too. Tears that might have been shed if Redsplash had not blinked them accidentally away blurred her vision, but these were not sorrowful tears. Something was wrong with her. As she attacked the pile of soil, sending it flying back to it's proper place, the pressure grew until it pounded like a second pulse inside her, like a monster attempting to dig it's way out of her. And when the last pawful of dirt was forced on top of the unmarked grave, the pressure tore itself free.

She was screaming again, but this was not the type of scream she had ever screamed before. Something inside her had died and something inside her had been broken free, and she was screaming a funeral dirge and a harsh declaration of bitter freedom. Her shriek of incomprehensible emotions and power declared war on death, and ripped apart the world, shaking everything she knew it it's very foundations and them pulling those apart, too. It was ripping apart her very existence and there was nothing she could do to stop it, because she had no will to attempt it. She was sprawled across the grave now, digging her paws into the displaced soil and screaming, screaming because there was no justice in the world, screaming because Fatefiend was dead and it wasn't right, screaming because he was dead and it should have been her…it should have been her.

There was no exact moment Redsplash began to feel her lungs keening for air, just another building pressure in her. But, perhaps just out of spite, she did not stop screaming and even when it came to the point where, fueled by an archaic desire to survive, she would have stopped, she found herself unable to. When she was finally thrown into unconsciousness, her scream echoed forbiddingly across the dark landscape, heading towards the mountain of Salamandastron to declare it's bloody and approaching war there.

…

The landscape was odd, more wispy cloud than solid ground. Redsplash had the disconcerting feeling of floating, and of being held in a benevolent palm that, benign or not, could close at any moment and squish her like an insect. The moon was larger than the non-apparent sun, and glowed more blue than the sun glowed yellow. When she looked at the ground, all she could see was what seemed like snow, but it glowed blue with the reflected light of the strangely colored moon.

For what seemed hours, she was alone. And then, suddenly, a mouse appeared in front of her, staring at her as if _she _were the one that had intruded upon this peaceful place. She had seen him before: when pikes had nearly devoured her alive and each time after that she had faded out of existence and arrived at strange gates he sent her away from. He was still imposing, if less forbidding. Something about him screamed of sorrow, but, then, everything about him screamed of danger. The mouse still had that sword of his, and his scars spoke of many experiences with pain. Redsplash had her own scars, and her own pain, but she still felt like a child standing in the presence of a warrior.

"Redsplash." His voice was strange too…almost as if his lips started moving a fraction of a second before the sound began, and stopped moving half a second before it stopped…and it echoed oddly, as if they were standing in a very large room or in a canyon of some sort.

"What do you want?" Redsplash inquired, automatically reaching for the dagger, which she found was not with her. She wondered, alarmed, where she had left it.

"What do you think you're doing?" Was his only reply, though it sounded far too suspicious for Redsplash's health.

"What do you think _you're_ doing?" Redsplash snapped back.

"You cannot stay at the mountain. You have to leave." His voice was commanding now and that irritated Redsplash. Who did this mouse think he was talking to? Warrior he might be, but Redsplash wasn't exactly the child she felt like.

"I can _stay_ where I want to. And what mountain? What're you talking about?"

This seemed to frustrate him, though no emotion ever showed on his face. "Salamandastron. Really, otter, I understand this must be rather difficult for you, but at least Fatefiend remembered."

"Fatefiend?" Fatefiend…yes, that's right. Something was wrong with Fatefiend, but what was it, exactly? What was going on? Where was she? Who was this mouse?

"Fatefiend is dead, otter." This was said rather curtly, almost as if the mouse was in a hurry, as if he had something important to get back to.

"_Dead_? He's…" And then it came back, like a hammer to the skull. For a second, everything seemed to shift. She wasn't standing somewhere peacefully blue, she was standing with one footpaw in the middle of a burning pool of lava and the other buried deep in the same lump of dirt that covered Fatefiend. Everything burned, and everything haunted, and, then, everything was blue again and it was so hard to keep standing…so hard to remember to keep breathing.

"You have to leave Salamandastron, Redsplash. I'm warning you, in a couple seasons-"

"_Can't. He said if I went to sleep again I wouldn't ever wake up…although, he didn't seem like he cared that much. Said it was now or a couple seasons later."_

Fatefiend's admission a season ago struck her quickly, sending her reeling backwards, and then she comprehended it. "_You_!" Redsplash hissed at the mouse, her eyes blazing red in all this blue. "You _knew_ this was going to happen!"

"I knew, but-"

Redsplash lunged, screeching like she had when Fatefiend had been killed, latching onto the mouse and driving him backwards, clawing at his eyes because she could see her own red orbs reflected in them. She wanted to kill him. Wanted to feel the blood spewing from his empty eye sockets drench her pelt, because _he_ could have saved Fatefiend, and he _hadn't_. And for a second, it seemed like it would work, but then it changed.

She'd had him pinned to the ground, but then, suddenly, everything changed and he was holding her down startling effectively, staring at her without hate but without regret. "I can't change who dies, Redsplash, and, like it or not, he _had to die_. Without him you're nothing, but with him you were only Fatefiend and Redsplash. _Neither_ of you were yourselves, you were only _half_ of what you could have been. _One_ of you had to die, and we would have _all_ preferred it if _you_ had, but that _didn't happen_."

She stared up at him. "You think I _wanted_ him to die? Kill me, mouse. You know I'm going to kill myself eventually."

His eyes narrowed momentarily. "Of course I know that. It's because you're _weak_. It's because you were _never_ as strong as the _ferret_ was. A _ferret_, Redsplash. A ferret that was stronger than an otter. And you showed so much promise at the beginning, your parents being who they were, your _brother_ being who he was. And then, when they needed you, you were _hiding_."

"I was not **_hiding_**!" Redsplash roared, shoving him off her and sitting up, blazing eyes glaring hate. "I didn't _know_!"

"Didn't know what, otter?" He shook his head, standing quickly. "You lie to yourself, and I'll lie to myself, but don't you _ever_ lie to me. You knew perfectly well what was happening, and you did _nothing_ to stop it. The ferret, no more than a few seasons old, killed _seven_ when they came to take his mother away. _Seven_, and what did you do? Nothing until they dragged you out and the Nameless One threw you into the fire."

"His mother…?" Redsplash was lost for a moment. Fatefiend had never talked about his mother.

"Oh, yes, did you think he had no mother? You lost everything, and he lost the only thing he had. Your family was…was the best, and his father is the best at what _his_ kind does. Both of you…you had so much promise as cubs…if you two had never met each other, the world would be a much different place, Brighteye. If you two had never met, maybe his death would not have been necessary."

"Don't blame his death on me. Don't _blame_ me for his death! _Not **his**_!" Redsplash growled at him, baring fangs in a feral challenge.

He glanced at her. "Why not? You blame yourself."

"What I blame myself for is _not_ your concern."

"Isn't it? You're the only one left, now, Redsplash. The squirrel, what do you think he can do? His past…it's worse than yours and the ferret's. It'll kill him if he stays. Is that what you want, Redsplash? Do you want to lose the squirrel to the mountain, too? And what about that wildcat? Evil due to necessity and insecurity in it's darkest form. You'll draw him out eventually, with your _emotions_, and are you ready for what he is inside? If you stay here, you'll lose everything, and if you're damaged any more, you'll break. And, weak as you are, you're _everything_ we have left."

"What do you **_mean_**?"  
"Who will kill the Nameless One, otter? That's what everything is about. None of the others can do it. The Warheart clan has no interest, and none have the strength. Bloodrise, perhaps, _if_ she wanted too, but all she wants is her realm. Darkclaw, of course, but only if he's willing to die for it, and there's nothing in the world that can make him give his life to an enemy, not when he knows his clan could thrive off the chaos the ferret brings. The squirrel, that one you call Root, he's stronger than anyone realizes, but only if he _knew_. He needs the anger, but if he _knew_ then he would become what he used to be, and if that happens we are all damned. Yes, it _has_ to be you. Once the other one…the one that nearly killed you last season could have done it, but you've ruined him, too. For one with such a hatred for heroes, Redsplash, you will be proud to know you've ruined so many of them that you might've ruined the entire world."

"Let it be ruined then. Let them _all_ die. What does it matter? Fatefiend is _dead_."

"And you would rather it have been you, is that what you _really_ think, Redsplash? Do you really think you didn't know what would happen if that ferret went up, _carting around the dead body of the badger's guard_, and talked to the badger. Oh, the badger lord knew who he was, but he knew nothing about what he could have been. His greatest enemy's son mocking him with the carcass of a beast he should have been able to protect was all he saw. Don't _keep lying_ to yourself, Redsplash. Out of all of them, _you_ were the first to recognize what was about to happen. You knew all along, but you only recognized it when you knew it was too late, because you didn't want to have to be the one to die."

"That's _not **true**_!"

"It's not?"

Redsplash snarled at him. "I didn't _want_ this! I didn't _ask_ to be born, and I didn't _ask _for what happened! I don't _care_ if I could kill the Nameless One, because I _won't do it_! You can't _make me do that_. Fatefiend didn't want to die, but he _definitely _didn't want me to. If I died he would do the _same things I'm doing_. It _wasn't_ my fault, and there's _nothing_ I can do to change the fact he's dead."

And then the mouse smiled, a sly sort of smile that said everything he had done and said was all a ploy to get her to say what she had just said. "Exactly." He replied. "Fatefiend's death was not your fault. You can't bring him back by killing the badger lord. Leave this place, otter, because there is nothing here that will heal you, nothing here worth staying for."

Redsplash stared at him for a very long time, tilting her head to the right and considering. For the tiniest stretch of time she considered following his instructions. After all, vengeance was bitter. It never fixed anything. And then she remembered all the times Fatefiend had commented about not wanting to die, or about how death was the worst part of life because it never made sense, and there was really nothing she could do. With a bitter smile she shrugged at the mouse. "I can't bring him back, but that doesn't mean I can't make the badger wish he had never killed him."

"That's your plan then? You're going to declare war and then get yourself killed while killing the badger? Is that how you're going to die, Redsplash? Honorary suicide?"

Redsplash shrugged. "Of course." She answered, and the mouse shook his head sadly.

"Such a promising cub… I never thought you'd be the one to kill all of the others."

Redsplash shrugged, "Things never work out like they're supposed to, do they?" She inquired bitterly and forced herself awake.

…

"Darkclaw!" Root caught up to the wildcat quickly. "Darkclaw, what're you doing?"

"Walking away." Darkclaw responded. "Walking away before I snap the otter in two."

"Stop it! You don't mean that!" This was more an order than anything else.

"Of course I don't, but I don't have to mean something to say it. Lying is very easy. You should try it some time."

"Fatefiend's _dead_."

"I know that, squirrel. I am really very well-acquainted with that fact."

"You can't just _walk away_! I _know_ that pain, Darkclaw. Red'll _kill_ herself."

"Do you really think so? I think she'll just wander blindly for several hours, dig herself a hole, chunk the ferret in it, and contemplate throwing herself into the ocean and drowning. I don't think she will actually do it, though. Very attached to life, that one."

"No! Not attached to _life_. She was only alive because she didn't want to leave _Fatefiend_. Don't play stupid, wildcat, you know what type of beast she is."

"I know far better than you do what type of beast she is, squirrel. And believe me when I tell you that she won't be killing herself on this night. Maybe later, when she's appeased whatever thirst for vengeance is eating at her right now. Not tonight, though. Not unless someone drives her to it."

"Who would do that?"

"I would. That's why I am walking away."

"_Why_ would you do that?"

"That's a very interesting question. Think about it. She's going to lead us a joyful little chase for revenge, isn't she? I don't mind, because it'll end with the killing of the badger lord, and that's been my goal all along. You don't mind because she's such a troubled soul and really all she needs is to understand that this vengeance will get her nowhere. After it's done, it'll be better, right? She'll get better?" Darkclaw shook his head, laughing quietly. "Squirrel, vengeance is not a disease. Her personality will not _go away_. In the end, all she'll want is something more drastic, something to stop the anger in her. And suicide sounds so poetic at the feet of the enemy who killed your only friend. In the end, she'll be dead anyway. If she died tonight, it would be a few less battle scars for me, and all these scars are really getting irritating."

"You're a terrible creature, Darkclaw. Perhaps the worst I've ever encountered."

"Besides yourself?" Darkclaw questioned, glancing over his shoulder at the squirrel and grinning as if he knew all the secrets in the world and found great amusement in not sharing any of them.

"What?" Root questioned, curious, but he felt a strange sense of dread building in his stomach. _Leave_…whispered the voice, and Root wanted to comply.

"That potion must have worked wonders, squirrel. You don't remember a thing, do you?"

"I don't understand…"

"Of course you don't. You should be very proud." Darkclaw grinned at him, but it was a grin that showed no true feelings…none at all. "Now scamper away and go see how that otter is doing. Who knows, I might be wrong and she could be hurtling off some cliff as we speak."

…

The sky was still dark now, and would be for a long time. Redsplash did not know what time it was, only that it was the middle of the night. She could feel the dark clouds gathering around her like the darkness in her had summoned them. There would be several dark days in the near future, and the clouds were fitting. If it had been a cheery sky, Redsplash might have lost it completely. Already, she knew, she was mostly gone, but there was an infinite difference between almost gone and completely insane.

She sat high on the cliff she had buried Fatefiend on, staring down at the restless, angry sea below her. It was some kind of sadistic miracle, how no matter how hard she tried to avoid the ocean, she was always brought back to it. She had deliberately put her back to it when she left to find a place to bury Fatefiend, and, yet, here she was. It was odd, how, after so many emotions burning through her, she felt so hollow now. She felt like there was nothing left in her to feel or utilize. No anger anymore, just a melancholy tranquility that was worse, somehow, than anything else had ever been in her life. Before, at least there had always been some thirst for retribution or for better days, now…now there was nothing. She was empty, and, about that, she felt absolutely nothing.

It was funny, in a way that Redsplash could recognize but not feel humor for. She had always been under the impression that Fatefiend needed _her_…to protect him, to look out for him, to keep from doing anything immensely stupid. And maybe he had. But she needed him far more than she had ever realized…because without Fatefiend she was completely and finally alone. And she had gone through enough in her short and volatile life…she did not need loneliness added to the pile of frigid emotions and smoldering recollections. She had felt loneliness before, of course, but before she had lost her family…now she had lost her friend.

Redsplash had felt this type of emptiness, to a lesser degree anyway, before. When she began to realize that her entire family was dead. Her eyes closed against this trail of memories, and she banished it back to whatever dark space of her mind it normally inhabited. Her family and Fatefiend had died for entirely different reasons. Her family's death had always made sense, if a strange kind of demonic sense. But this…no, it had no _reason_. Fatefiend had done nothing to that badger, nothing at all, and the badger had not wanted anything that Fatefiend possessed. It was just slaughter, and, yet, even slaughter made more sense than this.

Fatefiend had been the only one to understand her even better than she understood him. Yes, he was a ferret. Yes, he was the son of the nameless bastard that stole her life, but, despite all of that, he was, he had been, her only friend, ever. When Redsplash was dying or in danger of such a problem, Fatefiend had always been there to help her, albeit mocking and condescending the entire time. And, when Fatefiend had needed help, Redsplash, equally as sarcastic and patronizing, was there. It was an odd friendship, but that was what had, perhaps, made it so strong.

They had met under bad circumstances and they had become friends only because of a mutual respect for anything to cure the boredom of nonstop torture, and for wine. It had not been a normal type of friendship when it had begun. It had not even been a normal friendship at the very end. But, then, Fatefiend and Redsplash were not the types to have normal friendships.

Redsplash had rarely openly admitted she cared about Fatefiend. She had even told herself that she really didn't. But now that he was dead and the emptiness of a life alone was beginning to become apparent, Redsplash wasn't sure she even wanted to live. What type of creature had only one friend and, inadvertently or not, killed that only friend? Was she a curse? If she traveled with Root and Darkclaw long enough would they too die?

And why did everything always have to happen to _her_? Wasn't there some happy, innocent little cub somewhere whose best friend could be murdered by a badger? Couldn't someone _else_ feel this type of torture? Why did Redsplash, whose youth, life, family, trust, and happiness had already been stolen, had to somehow survive the burden of being responsible for killing her only friend?

It was because of her. _She_ had led Fatefiend here. _She_ had mocked him into going through with his suicidal idea. Fatefiend had died because he had not wanted to leave her, or be made fun of by her. And that knowledge would have hurt if Redsplash could feel anything, would have hurt far worse than a dagger to the neck could have…because it should have been her that died, not him…because he should be the one mourning now, and not her.

And maybe she could fix that…maybe if she threw herself off the cliff into the temperamental waves, Fatefiend would come back. Maybe that's all whoever was in charge wanted. The mouse had said one of them had to die, if Redsplash gave away her life, would Fatefiend get his back? And would she even feel the pain? Because pain would be welcome now, after all this emptiness. Yes, maybe dying now would be better than the long ordeal of getting her revenge…

"Red?" Came a voice that was not Fatefiend's and, so, did not matter. "Red, are you out here?"

"Don't call me that…" Redsplash murmured quietly.

He settled beside her, his legs dangling over the side of the cliff as hers had. "Red…"

"Go away, squirrel. I prefer to contemplate suicide alone."

"I'm sorry…about…him…" Root did not seem to think her comment worth saying anything about, and his green eyes seemed nearly as earnest and his perfectly sincere voice.

"Why are you sorry?" Redsplash demanded, rather brutally. "_I_ brought him here."

"I'm sorry because you're too blind to see it's not you're fault."

"It _is_ my fault. I killed him."

"You can't think that." Root told her, his tone quiet but commanding. "You can't think that at all, Red. It's poison."

"Don't call me that."

"Don't call you what?"

"Red. My _name_ is Redsplash. And I don't care what you say…it _is_ my fault."

Root sighed softly, as if the entire world was leaning on him and pressing all the air out of his lungs. "Redsplash, you can't think that way. If I wanted I could blame myself because I let him go alone, and I _knew_ the badger would not receive a ferret visitor well. Darkclaw could blame himself for not running fast enough. We can all blame ourselves for this. The thing is…Darkclaw knows far too well and cares far too less, and me…well, I'm just too in love with my own innocence to believe truly that I killed him."

"Go away, Root. I want to be alone."

"What we want is rarely what we need, Redsplash. You want me to leave you here alone, but that doesn't mean I'll go."

"I'll push you off this cliff." Redsplash threatened, her voice and face lacking anything even remotely resembling an emotion.

"If you really think it would make you feel any better…" Root started, his tone holding that same sincerity that made him so hard to hate him, "Then do it. I can swim, and this height probably won't kill me."

Redsplash lunged to her feet, only avoiding flying off the cliff because of her impeccable balance. She was preparing to storm off, into the dark to find somewhere to be alone, but Root caught her arm, holding her back with a strength that seemed odd for one who was always so…for one who never really exercised that muscle.

"I know what it's like to lose a friend, Redsplash…" Root told her quietly, his voice so low it might have been just the moving wind if it didn't hold so much earnestness.

"Is that what you think I lost today, Root?" Redsplash asked him, her green eyes staring disoriented and confused up at his. "I didn't lose a friend. I lost my life."

She shoved him off her, nearly sending him into the sea, and sprinted away. Within seconds she was lost to the darkness, as the night shielded her like a protector, hiding her in its darkness and shielding her in it's frigid apathy.

Root took a quick step away from the edge of the cliff and glared after her. "_Stupid_ dramatic otter."


	7. Chapter Seven

((I managed to write, edit, and get this chapter up in less than a week. Go me. Actually, I wrote all this as quickly as I could for two reasons. The first being that next week is the last week of school for me and also the week that they cram all the final exams into (oh, boy…) and it is highly unlikely that I will have time to write on this story at all next week. So, I figured I'd write another chapter and hope that keeps you reviewer-people content. Of course, a while ago I would have just waited until school let out and I had some time before getting around to writing, which leads to my second reason. I kinda felt I owed it to the reviewers to attempt to get chapters up faster. Seriously, I write erratically...getting sometimes a couple chapters up every month, sometimes less. And, yet, you reviewers still review when I _do_ manage to finish a chapter. You all have more patience then I do. Much more. So, anyway, this is kind of a thank-you for all that, but, considering how my editing process was much less thorough, it might be a thank-you full of grammatical errors and nonsensical sentences. Eh, what can I say? It's still a thank-you.

Ok. I used the word humane in this chapter. Now, I know it doesn't fit with the vocabulary that animals are supposed to know (woah, that phrase is ironic… 'doesn't fit with the vocabulary that animals are supposed to know' indeed) but all the synonyms I could find didn't _fit_. So, if any of you can come up with a word that does fit, _please_ tell me, because every time I read over that, it makes me wince. Oh, and, if Darkclaw appears to know too much about broken necks, that's because he does. I don't know why I wrote that part in there. Someone told me about that a long time ago, and I've never managed to shake it out of my head. So, I wrote it down, to see if that would help. It hasn't.))

…

Search parties were all over the place, searching, apparently, for him and the other two. Root knew very well that they would never find Darkclaw, but was a bit worried about Redsplash. In her current state, she appeared to be inviting any reason to die to herself. If she went searching for a reason to die tonight, she would find it. As for himself, Root was managing to stay unnoticed with such ease it would have been eerie, if Root ever really thought about it.

Darkclaw was leaving tracks. Tracks that even the hares did not notice, but Root was following with only minor trouble. It was obvious to the squirrel that the wildcat was doing this on purpose. If he had not wanted to be found, then chasing Darkclaw would be like chasing a nightmare: impossible and infinitely dangerous. As Root followed the tracks, he erased them. One of these hares might happen upon them eventually, and the last thing Root needed was innocent blood on his paws. Fatefiend's blood had already stained them, and that was bad enough. If some poor troupe of hares followed these tracks to Darkclaw, there was no way to know what would happen to them, but Root was willing to guess it would not be a fun experience for any but the wildcat.

When the tracks stopped, Root did not see the cave entrance for a full minute or so. It was ingeniously disguised by nature, with plant life draped across the small opening as if purposefully hiding it. The squirrel only marveled for an instant, and then he trudged on in, and it began increasingly apparent that it was not nature that had hidden this cave. The walls were too smooth, and there were several unlit torches shoved in niches along the way. Root could not see them, but the shape was familiar to him, and he recognized them easily as he felt his way along.

He had been walking in darkness for about five minutes or so when he saw the flickering light of several torches. Following the light, he managed to find his way into a wide, tall room. Darkclaw was sitting, in all his dark and brooding brilliance, in the very center, glaring at the torches as if the light hurt his eyes. There was something different about him, now, something Root couldn't quite understand. Maybe it was something that had changed within Root himself, and not in the wildcat sitting in front of him.

Root remembered clearly being terrified of the wildcat. But now…now Root wasn't sure there was anything in the world he was afraid of, and that realization was not a happy one. Fear made one real; he knew that. Without fear you were just a shell of something that could have been beautiful: the abandoned cocoon of a departed butterfly. It hurt, for some reason, this new fearlessness. Darkclaw had been easy to fear, once, and now it was as if the wildcat suddenly lacked those vicious teeth and ominous claws. The world had lost its' claws, in a way, but the world was still brutal. It did not need claws to kill you. The claws only made death seem more humane.

"Squirrel." Darkclaw's voice was low, now, and tired in a way it had never been before. Before, Darkclaw had always possessed the control to keep his tone neutral or mildly threatening. Now, it seemed, Fatefiend's death had robbed him, too, of the energy it took to keep up normal pretenses.

"Wildcat." Root replied in the same bitterly tired voice as he crossed the cave and settled on the rough rock floor in front of the wildcat, who had surrounded himself with torches as if to ward away the night with a circle of flaming wood.

"How is the otter?" It was an odd question as, perhaps an hour ago, but almost certainly less, he had been far more certain about Redsplash's health than Root had been. Was it possible that Darkclaw was not as certain about what he said as he pretended to be? Or was the wildcat attempting to take back the way he had seemed to know everything? It made no sense, but perhaps it was better that way.

"Alive. I suppose." It was a hard question to answer, and Root failed miserably at it.

"You suppose?" Green eyes flicked upward, indifference replaced by curiosity and minute alarm.

"She left…I was talking to her, and I made her mad. She was talking about suicide, but I don't think she meant it. Not really. She said she lost her life." Root shrugged, not understanding the words when he repeated them back any more than he had when he had heard them.

"Ah…" Darkclaw nodded at this, as if it was something he had expected, but had still had doubts about. "Her nature is chaotic, is it not?"

"What?" Root was far too tired to answer questions tonight, but this sounded like a question that would have been hard to answer even if he were wide awake.

"It is very hard to understand her, as she does not understand herself. I suppose one who has declared war on all her race stands for must be a very confused beast, but Redsplash…" His head shook back and forth. "There is something about her we will never understand, until he know about her kin and her past. I had hoped to know more by gathering information from Fatefiend, as he was prone to drop tidbits, but now…" There was a sigh, but it sounded almost like a hiss.

"But now Fatefiend is dead." Root did not like how the words tasted. It seemed hard to form them, and hard to force them out of his throat.

"Yes. And this death of his…it certainly ruins my plans. I don't suppose you know anything that could bring him back?" Darkclaw peered up at him as if he was deathly serious about this. It was almost as if there were, for some strange reason, a hope that Root would know how to bring the dead back to life.

"No…"

"Ah, of course not. Not you. Not anymore." The wildcat turned his head away from the squirrel and, for a second, it sounded as if Darkclaw were crying. This alarmed Root severely until the squirrel realized that the wildcat was not crying at all…he was laughing.

"There is nothing funny here, Darkclaw." Root informed him icily.

Darkclaw shook his head again, turning to look at the squirrel. "Actually, squirrel, it is quite hilarious. I don't suppose you would understand the humor in the situation, being as you currently are, but the irony is astounding. Don't ever seek redemption again, squirrel. It will surely kill us all." And then the wildcat stood up, and began to walk away.

"What? What do you mean?" Root demanded, bounding to his feet. "Where are you going?"

"To find our dear friend the otter and attempt to force her through a stage or so of the grieving process. We have no need for sorrow. Not from that one." Still laughing, but his laugh bitter now, the wildcat left.

…

The ocean was calm here. It was a bay, of sorts. The water seemed to lose its' energy, and only lapped at the shore like a dying swimmer reaching pathetically for sand. None of the patrols came to this part of the ocean, not tonight anyway. Perhaps they had already searched it, or perhaps they simply forgot about it. Neither Darkclaw nor Redsplash were familiar with the minds of hares.

The otter was standing, neck-deep, in the ocean, staring southeast as if intent on finding something in that direction. Her eyes were red, but that was merely the bloodwrath slowly leaving, and not the evidence of tears that had never been shed. She had a strange look on her face, as if she were trying to understand something, and attempting to keep all emotions off her face at the same time. It was strange, how one could see so much on her face, but nothing in her eyes.

"What do you think you're doing here, Redsplash?" Darkclaw questioned, standing on the shore directly above where the waves touched the sand.

"Looking…" she replied distantly, as if not paying attention to him, but answering anyway.

"And what are you looking for?" Darkclaw inquired.

"I am looking," here she took a breath as if she required the extra air to finish, "for the Nameless One's lands."

"That's rather pointless, don't you think? What do you expect to gain from it?"

"What do you expect to gain from questioning me about it? Did you come to make sure I was alive, or did you come to make sure I was surviving?" She spoke this quietly, almost whispering.

"I came to make sure you were still utilizing your lungs." Darkclaw informed her evenly. "I did not come to listen to you mumble incoherently about survival."

"Well, I am still breathing. You can leave now, Darkclaw."

"You'll never find them."

"Find what?"

"The lands of the Unnamed One. You cannot see them from here."

"We often look for things we cannot see. It's what makes us keep living. We were searching for something, Darkclaw. What was it?"

"Depends. Who was searching?" Darkclaw asked, settling reluctantly into this eerie game of conversation.

"Fatefiend and I. We came here looking for something…but I can't remember what it was. Do you know? You know a lot, but…do you know this?"

"I don't presume to know everything, and the reason why you came here currently escapes me. Perhaps you were looking for treasure." Darkclaw's reply was sarcastic. After all, he would only take so much of a moping otter before it began to annoy him.

She nodded. "Treasure, of course. But treasure is everything. Every gasp of air is treasure, because treasure is simply what you have that others wish they did. This breath of air I just took is a treasure to someone who is dying of strangulation."

"Like Fatefiend did." Darkclaw agreed.

"Fatefiend did not die of strangulation. His neck was broken." Redsplash argued, and, for the first time, she sounded like his answer mattered…as if she were finally listening to him.

"Did you think that a broken neck is what killed him? You've broken bones before. It's not the breaking that killed him, Redsplash. When your neck breaks, your mind cannot tell your lungs to move, and so they don't. Fatefiend strangled to death, Redsplash."

Redsplash twitched oddly, almost as if she shuddered, but only her shoulders. "He did not want to die that way."

"I don't suppose he wanted to die at all."

"He didn't."

"Get out of the water, Redsplash. You won't find comfort searching for something you'll never find."

"That's my life now, Darkclaw. I might as well get used to it." And then Redsplash dived underwater and swam out to sea. Darkclaw was startled at first, but knew better than to go in pursuit. Few could catch an otter in water, and Darkclaw was very well aware that he was not one of those few. With a growl, he turned back towards the caves. Hopefully Redsplash knew better than to swim too far out to sea. Losing Fatefiend was acceptable, though disastrous. Losing Redsplash, too, was intolerable.

…

By the time Darkclaw got back into the cave, he was startled to find Redsplash already there. She was eating something in a dark corner. Root had, apparently, gone out and fetched their packs while Darkclaw went searching for Redsplash. The squirrel had created some kind of food, probably for something to do, and we currently staring at the empty bowl as if it were a monster.

"When're we leaving?" Root's voice was oddly hollow, and it was only after asking that the squirrel looked up to find his answers in the wildcat's eyes.

"Where do you think we'd go?" Darkclaw demanded harshly. Now was not the time to speak of such things. Darkclaw was irritated and fatigued.

"Somewhere. Anywhere. Just…we can't stay here."

"Of course we can't _stay here_, but, unless you _liked_ being chased through the forest, we can't go back the way we came. And someone who thinks my family is at war with him owns the area surrounding the mountain of Salamandastron. He will not just kill me, if he finds me there. He will kill us all."

"Then _why_ did you let us come here? Do you want us to die, Darkclaw? Is that it? If you want us dead, then just _kill us_."

"If I wanted you _dead_, you wouldn't be _alive_." Darkclaw snapped. "In a few days we can leave. I have a message in transport that will allow us into the lands beyond Salamandastron."

"So, we're supposed to stay here until that message has been delivered? I _won't_ do it, wildcat. You can't _make_ me stay here. The whole _place_ reeks of death now. The _air_ is poisonous. The hares are searching for us. How long until you think they find us, Darkclaw? How long do you think we're safe?"

"Eternity." Darkclaw growled. "If that's how long we need to stay."

"We need to _leave_, Darkclaw. We can't _heal_ if this death is _there_ all the time!" By 'we' he meant Redsplash, and it was obvious. It was this reference, perhaps, that brought Redsplash out of her silent observance of this argument.

"We're not leaving." She said quietly, like she was only now realizing what she meant to do. Darkclaw looked at her, and he knew what she meant. His lips tugged down into a frown, and his eyes glittered with disapproval.

"What do you mean?" Root inquired, his tone carrying an odd sense of dread. Perhaps he, too, knew what was coming.

"I have to get my vengeance. Vengeance for Fatefiend." Redsplash nodded. These words sounded right, even if they felt painful.

Root looked at her silently for a very long time, lips pressed together in mute anxiety, but he knew, eventually, that he would have to ask the question hanging in the air. "And how, exactly, do you think you're going to get that?"

"We will need an army." She told them both, her head tilting to the side and her eyes focusing on the air in front of her.

"The only armies about are Salamandastron's army of hares, and the five of the Unnamed One's armies combined into one. They are marching this way." Darkclaw informed them in a rumble.

"_What_?" Root demanded loudly, though Redsplash only blinked and smiled.

"We are about to be caught in a war." Darkclaw stared at Redsplash, watching her as one would watch an approaching disaster.

"We will go to the Nameless One's armies, and we will join." Redsplash informed them both, with a terrible kind of calm for one talking about what was most likely suicide.

"The Nameless One is still looking for you." Darkclaw reminded the otter quietly, frowning but not scowling.

"Well, that is a problem. But it's not one I'm worried about. If they come to capture me, I will kill them." She nodded slowly and smiled. "I will kill them all."

After that, Redsplash did not speak another word for the rest of the night. Root told them both how stupid this was, many times, and Darkclaw suggested that the squirrel get some sleep. Finally, still muttering about suicide and stupidity, the squirrel curled up on the cold rock floor, and dreamed deeply of things he would not remember when he woke up. Darkclaw watched Redsplash stare blankly in front of her for about half an hour after Root fell asleep, but even the wildcat needed sleep sometime, and he went into the shadows to seek out sleep. Redsplash did not sleep that night, but went to watch the hares and the sky at the mouth of the cave, waiting for the sun to rise.

…

The left when the sun had begun to rise. After that, they did not stop. It was amazing, really, how one could walk for days if properly motivated. Redsplash, it seemed, simply forgot to eat or drink at all. Occasionally, she would start to stumble and sway oddly, and Root would hurry to catch up to her, force her to drink something, and, if she were close enough to fainting to not be able to fight back, force some food down her throat. But Redsplash was strong, and this only happened perhaps half a dozen times in the three days they traveled.

Night and day passed without meaning. Shadows grew, shortened, and disappeared. The sun flew across the sky, to be met by the moon, and twilight and dawn danced in an endless, hollow, waltz. Footstep followed footstep, and breath followed breath. One of them would blink, and hours would slip past. None of them knew what kept the others going, but all of them were united in not wanting to stop. Their past held horrors none of them were willing to face. They turned their backs to their lives and marched silently onward.

It was in the early evening of the third day that they came upon the horde. A simple search party met them, and brandished bloodstained weaponry at them dangerously. Darkclaw batted the spears away in blatant aggravation, and Root and Redsplash stared blankly at the swords and daggers, as if wondering if such things were supposed to be intimidating to them. Finally, it became clear to the three travelers what was happening. Darkclaw took the lead, and Redsplash did not seem to care. Root seemed suspicious for a moment, but voiced no arguments; he was far too tired for such nonsense.

"Put away your weapons, idiots." Darkclaw commanded the search party of rats harshly. "We have come to join your army."

The rabble of rats glared up at him. For the briefest of seconds, it seemed they would attack and that would be the end of it, but, in a way that gave a new definition to reluctance, they agreed to take them back to their army's leader. Darkclaw's ears pricked forward at the mention of this, and he smiled. He realized far before the other two that the five armies, which were supposed to join as one, were still treating each other as separate entities. Darkclaw knew very well how this could be used, and this was the best news he had heard in many very long days and equally as endless nights.

They traveled for perhaps fifteen minutes before entering a gigantic camp. Fires lit the fading sky like thousands of minute suns. Each fire had, on average, five beasts sitting around it. There were tens of thousands of beasts here, if not even more. Darkclaw's eyes fairly gleamed with the possibilities. But, even in that brief moment of joy, he noticed the state of the camp. Invisible lines had been drawn, which no beast here dared to cross. The armies were not mixing. That was blatantly obvious. If anything, they were fighting against each other. Darkclaw's quiet smile turned into a malevolent smirk.

"I sent you to bring back food, and you bring me back _this_?" Demanded an outraged, rather squeaky, voice. "I oughta kill the lot of you!"

Darkclaw, Redsplash, Root, and the search party of rats all turned to see a burly rat come stalking up, waving a short sword hazardously. "They said they wanted ta join!" One of the rats shouted back, swallowed, and then added, hastily. "Sir."

The burly rat narrowed his beady eyes, scowling. "Sir's right." He growled. "And 'ow many otters you know that wanta kill _hares_? They're _spies_."

"The otter is not. And is the squirrel either." Darkclaw remarked, his tone calm, before adding, almost as an afterthought: "And I, most certainly, am not a spy."

"No one spoke to _you_." The burly rat, who was obviously the leader, growled viciously. "An' if you want to join an army, you've gotta learn to _speak_ when _spoken to_, and not any time else!"

Darkclaw smirked at him. "Forgive me, then, I did not know I would be welcomed so…poorly."

"Just who do you think you are, _wildcat_?" The rat roared, standing on the tips of his footpaws so that he could wave the short sword in Darkclaw's impassive face.

"I am the son of Saedian and Caraya. I am the brother of Bloodrise, Lian, Grenail, and Bluefang. I am a prince of the clan of Warheart." Darkclaw said all of this in a disinterested drawl. "Who are _you_?"

"I'm Kani, _general_ of an army of the Nameless One. My master does not like your clan."

"And my clan does not like me." Darkclaw retorted, his tone both serious and ironic. "I was exiled last season, or about then, anyway. I heard about my family's enemy's plans for this area, and came here as quickly as possible. If my family exiled me, they have no say over whose army I fight for, and I intend to fight for the Unnamed One's."

"Why?" Kani demanded suspiciously.

"Because I never fight on the losing side of a war." Darkclaw answered calmly.

Kani stared at them suspiciously for several seconds. "No." He snapped finally. "I don't trust any of you. Take 'em away, rats. Kill 'em."

"Now, now, Kani, let's not be _hasty_." Drawled the smooth voice of a large red fox, who seemed to appear out of nowhere. "Just because you never accept any but rats into your army does not mean mine can't use some…reinforcements." He smiled broadly and stared at the three of them as if they were meat hanging from hooks, and he was feeling a bit hungry.

"Stay away from my prisoners, Rekth!" Kani bellowed loudly, sounding both possessive and outraged.

"They're not your prisoners if you intend to kill them, Kani. Aysini's army does the executing, and she owes me a favor." The fox answered smoothly.  
"I'll kill them myself!" Bellowed the rat and moved his sword as if he were planning to decapitate Root. Of course, this would have caused a chain reaction if Root, Redsplash, and Darkclaw were awake enough to realize what happened. As it was, there was the hissing of the sword moving, and then a loud metallic sound as the short sword met an oddly curved blade. The fox, Rekth, had blocked the sword with what appeared to be a scythe, and he was looking rather annoyed about having to do so.

"Kani, do not attempt to ruin the plan it has taken us generals weeks to create. It may not be the most brilliant plan, but it was the only way we could keep all five armies in check. _If_ you decide to execute the prisoners or new recruits, you are going to have to give Aysini the right to scouting parties."

"I _won't_." Kani growled.

"Then I will take these prisoners and go call in that favor owed to me." The fox replied quietly. "And _if_ you try to stop me, I will kill you. No rat is going to ruin this army. _You_ will not ruin this siege."

"I'll kill you someday, _fox_. You and yer entire _army_." Threatened the rat, his teeth flashing yellow.

"How many times are you going to say that before you challenge me to some kind of duel?" Rekth inquired uninterestedly. "Come along, you three. We have to visit the fair Aysini. And, if we're lucky, she will threaten our body parts and not our lives."

They walked along after the fox, none of them looking anything close to healthy. Redsplash's eyes were red from fatigue instead of wrath. Root looked about ready to fall on his face and die. Only Darkclaw was alert, but, for him, this was all routine, and even he had a strange cast to his features that hinted at not near enough sleep. Several beasts looked up as they passed, the rats of Kani's army with particular detestation. It was becoming increasingly apparent that Rekth and Kani were not exactly allies, even if the Nameless One had ordered them to be. One of the rats went so far as to draw his dagger as Darkclaw passed. The wildcat was not worried. If any of these rats attempted anything dangerous, Darkclaw would kill them in the instant it took him to realize what was happening.

They crossed over the freakishly well-defined border between armies, and into one full of all the species one could except from a normal vermin army. After the completely rat army of Kani, it was almost a relief to see weasels and stoats. One could stare at rats for only so long, after all. Mixed, though they were, they was still something…off about them. It took a while to be noticed, but the fact that they were all burly and had the look of a fanatic was not missed by all three of the misfortunate travelers. Darkclaw noticed it, and he immediately became even more alert. When walking with the wicked, one does not let down one's guard.

"Aysini!" Rekth crowed the name as if summoning forth an old friend. "_Ay-sini_!"

"What is it you want, Rekth?" Came a brutal feminine voice. A female fox stood up from a fire, golden eyes glaring cruel rage. Her fur was jet-black, and her fangs pearly white. Her black tunic was stained with blood, and she wore the skull of some misfortunate mammal as the buckle for her belt. She fairly bristled with daggers, and had one long, thin sword she carried on her back. Overall, her appearance was nearly as malicious as the wicked glittering in those golden eyes of hers.

"It is very simple, Aysini. I promise." Rekth grinned widely at her and he strolled over to stand across from her, gesturing at the three beasts behind them. "Kani wants them killed. I want them alive."

The female fox cast demonically appraising eyes over all three of them. "I don't see why you'd keep the squirrel. The otter doesn't look strong, either."

"If nothing else, we can use them as false hostages." Rekth replied with a shrug of his red-furred shoulders.

Aysini scowled. "My beasts want blood, Rekth. We have not seen a decent amount for days. If we don't see it from these three, who'll take their place?"

"I have prisoners we're not using. Let's kill them." Rekth suggested indifferently. "Or, even better, we can make these three kill them to test their loyalty. Nothing like killing the innocent to prove one's true vileness, after all."

Aysini glared at him. "You like to talk, don't you, Rekth?" Rekth's grin faded to a scowl, and Aysini shrugged. "But, I accept your suggestion. Bring three prisoners to my camp, have these three kill them, and we will call it even."

"All right, then." Rekth agreed with a faint smile and a nod. He turned, towards the camp directly to the right of Aysini's.

"Oh, and Rekth…" Aysini's voice rang out behind them. "If that Warheart wildcat you're leading around comes near _any_ of my beasts, I will dig your eyes out with my daggers."

"Of course you will, Aysini. How could I expect anything else?" Rekth called back good-naturedly, grinning like a cub given candy.

…

Redsplash was holding the bow in her paws like it was some fragile artifact of an ancient culture. She had strung it seconds ago, and was waiting patiently for the burly weasels to drag the screaming female mouse out of her cage. It was irritating, really, as her screaming had set off the entire bunch. There were many prisoners, and all of their voices were intertwined in furious and frightened shrieks. It was hurting Redsplash's ears.

The blood of the shrew Darkclaw had killed was already soaking into the sand. The corpse was to be mutilated by Aysini's army and then thrown into the ocean. Darkclaw had objected to the loss of good meat, but Rekth had offered him the bodies of all the hare spies his army found, and Darkclaw had settled into contented silence. The smell of the recently dead made Redsplash's nostrils twitch. Root appeared as if he might be sick.

When they finally brought the mouse out and shoved her to the ground, Redsplash brought up the bow quickly. They had given her three arrows, and she would use all three. The first hit the mouse in the shoulder. It was hardly unintentional, but Root looked completely shocked. The screams reached a fevered pitch and, for some reason, Redsplash felt a smile forming on her face. She was no sadist, not really, but pain seemed almost funny now. The second arrow flew all the way through the mouse's delicate ear. Blood was flowing freely out of wounds now. Root was looking more and more likely sickened by it all, and Darkclaw looked a little amused. Suddenly, pain was not funny anymore. The third arrow pierced the mouse's heart, and her high-pitched screams were silenced.

Redsplash passed the bow on to Root, and went to stand by herself, watching unemotionally. The prisoners were looking at her as if she were a new kind of demon that they had never seen before. A demon wearing the mask of one of their own. Redsplash smiled at that thought, but could not have explained what was funny about it. Root was staring at the bow as if he was wondering how it had gotten into his paws, and if it would kill him if he held it too tightly. A ferret gave him three arrows, and Root promptly gave two back, mumbling something about wasting arrows, but Redsplash knew that he just didn't have the stomach to torture his prey.

The hare was young, barely more than a cub really, but he was not screaming, as the fully-grown mouse had. He faced Root without showing any fear, and it was impossible to tell if he really felt any. Perhaps, if the hare had been screaming, it would have been easier. As it was, Root lifted the bow and aimed at the hare's heart, but could not find the will to kill him. For a second, everything seemed lost. If he killed the hare, everything that mattered to Root would be false…and if he didn't, he would die, and Redsplash would be left alone. Again. There were some things that just could not be allowed to happen.

Root attempted to explain this, using his eyes, to the hare, as he let the taunt string go, but the hare did not understand. How could he? The arrow silenced his frantically beating heart, but his accusing stare could not be silenced with a simple act of mortal violence. Root dropped the bow in the sand and turned away, fighting to keep some kind of screaming objection silent. Something murmured appreciation in his mind, something that liked the killing. What was normally a voice in his head gave him no words, but the approval was tangible. It nearly made Root sick.

"All right, then, Aysini, they're perfectly murderous. Approve?" Rekth's voice rang out, full of mockery for the newly dead.

"The squirrel hesitated." Aysini reminded the other fox, scowling.

"He was _aiming_." Rekth argued laughingly.

"Make sure he learns to 'aim' faster." Aysini snapped. "Now, go back to your army."

Rekth shrugged and led the three of them out of the gigantic crowd of beasts that was Aysini's army. All of them carried knives, intent upon disfiguring the corpses of the three dead beasts. Root could barley breathe, with the way they crowded him. Darkclaw and Redsplash shouldered them out of the way, and Root followed in the space they left behind, but, still, they crowded. Air was precious, suddenly.

…

"We _killed_ them." Root hissed at the two of them later that night, in the tent they had been allotted and had placed practically in the center of Rekth's army. Root had objected, but Darkclaw had been instant. Now, Darkclaw sat on a veritable mountain of pillows he had stolen from the tents around this one, whose owners had stolen them from the places they raided. Redsplash had taken a few from him, and was propped up against them, ransacking the bags she had 'borrowed' from passing vermin, and taking bites from apples, cheeses, meats, and various other foods before throwing them away as if bored of their taste. The only thing she kept was a bottle of wine she had taken from Kani's tent, and she sipped from it constantly. The two of them watched Root as if only mildly entertained by his restless actions and his useless words.

"Do you not understand that? They were _innocent_, and _we **killed them**_!"

"Keep your voice down." Redsplash cautioned blankly.

"You should know by now, squirrel, that none are truly innocent. You are not. I am not. The otter certainly is not. None here are. Do you think that hare you killed would have been captive if he was innocent? He was obviously a Salamandastron hare. These armies haven't even reached the mountain yet. That hare was a runaway. You only run if you've done something that requires running from."

"It _doesn't_ matter! He did _nothing_ to us!" Root argued fiercely.

"The Nameless One has done nothing to you in particular. Yet, you would kill him if you saw him, wouldn't you?" Darkclaw questioned. At the mention of the Nameless One, Redsplash's upper lip drew up in a snarl.

"That isn't fair!" Root objected.

"Well, perhaps not to you it isn't." Darkclaw agreed amiably, shrugging his gigantic shoulders. "But you can hardly yell at us for what you, yourself, did too. You killed with us, Root. Do you not remember?" There was a mocking tone to that last sentence, but Root had no time to consider it.

"I only did it because you got us into this situation!" Root hissed.

Darkclaw rolled his eyes and stood up. "I did not. I merely manipulated the situation we were already in. If you're looking for someone to blame for being here, blame Redsplash. She decided to come here. Get some sleep, squirrel. You're talking nonsense." The wildcat went to the entrance, or exit in this case, of the tent and began to leave.

"Where are you going?" Root demanded, his voice nearly shrill with annoyance.

"To study this army and find it' faults." Darkclaw replied cryptically and left.

"He knows too much already. He doesn't need to find any thing else out." Root announced vehemently as he paced anxiously back and forth. As tired as he had been before, he was filled with a nervous type of energy now. He was restless and nervous, and those two were never a good combination.

"Let him find out what he can." Redsplash told Root calmly. "We will need it."

"For _what_?" Root demanded, loud enough to cause Redsplash to look up at him sharply. "What are we _doing_ here, Redsplash? What do you think we'll accomplish by doing _any_ of this? Joining with vermin that want you dead, going to war with an undefeated mountain, fighting a _badger_…it's all _madness_, Redsplash. Do you _not **understand** that_?"

"I understand it perfectly, squirrel." Redsplash retorted, her tone venomous and her expression a snarl. "And if you don't like it, you are free to flee whenever you want to."

"I _can't_ do that!" Root bellowed. "Redsplash, you don't understand _loyalty_!"

Redsplash was on her feet in half a second, lunging forward as if she could make her point clearer by invading Root's personal space. "I know what it's like to lose it." She growled.

For a second it appeared as if Root was about to attempt to kill her, and then, magically, he reigned in his temper, and words came flying out of his mouth, even though he had planned on simply walking away. "Is that how you're going to use it? Do you think throwing his death at us like that is going to make me feel _sorry_ for you? Well, it _doesn't work_. Not on me, and _not_ on the wildcat."

Redsplash's paw connected solidly with his jaw, and the squirrel staggered back a few steps. The otter wanted to say something, _anything_, but words were beyond her now. Root just snorted, shaking his head. He appeared to want to say something, but decided against it. The squirrel followed Darkclaw's lead, and left, but he did not follow the wildcat's footsteps. Sometimes, you just need to be alone.


	8. Chapter Eight

((If you were looking for a chapter full of adventure and grave peril, you found the wrong one. I'd skip back to chapter three for that. This one is all about setting the scenes and introducing (sometimes re-introducing) the characters. Woohoo. Anyway, this chapter shows the "real" side of Rekth, as it has an entire thousand words or so from his point of view…sort of. It introduces around three brand new characters, two of whom I'm not overly fond of, but you might be. Oh, and it re-introduces Fallen. You remember him, right? Otter…was called Ghost for a while? Well, anyway, he's back. Darkwing shows up. Root actually actively tries to remember a certain thing, sort of, and succeeds. I deleted an entire character who was supposed to join with the three main characters as the final person in their group, because I thought about it and she had no real reason to exist. I gave her "job" among the little group to Root.

Pff…nothing else to say, really. Except that if school had gone on for another week I'd have been forced to fake my own death and move to Ireland. Two more weeks and the "faking" part would've become iffy..))

It was boring, sometimes, being the commander of an army carefully constructed. There were no power-hungry ambitious beasts in Rekth's army. No, none at all. After first, of course, there had been, but Rekth had killed, charmed, tricked, or otherwise disposed of the ambition in them. Two of the most ambitious had become his more trusted captains, and they were probably out there now, in the middle of the army, drinking themselves happy and enjoying life as much as it could be enjoyed when one was in the possession of enough power to order around those surrounding you, and enough wine to make it funny. Damn them. Rekth should have stayed an assassin. Back then he had been free to do as he wished, when he wished to. Now he was restricted by the rules of those in power, and by the fact that he had to compete constantly with the other generals for a prize that he did not want. Added to that, Aysini appeared to be completely immune to his normally addictive charm. Oh, Rekth could have won her over long ago. All he had to do was slice open both palms, toss his blood into a "purifying" fire, desecrate a couple of corpses, and burn the ritual tattoos into his skin with smoldering metal. Which was never going to happen, as Rekth had stopped drinking several seasons ago.

The fox sighed and glanced at the scythe he had just finished sharpening. It was a weapon he had killed many with, and it was a weapon he was perfectly trained for. He did not know when he started hating it, but hate it he did. Before, so long ago now that it was getting a bit hard to recall, he had been fascinated with it. Now…now he attained perfection with that weapon, and now it was boring. Life was boring. No one in this army could kill him, but boredom had latched its' jaws onto him and was slowly draining him of a will to live. Odd, that boredom would rob of you of motivation rather than feed it to you. Rekth rolled his eyes and was about to launch himself into a deep pit of self-pity, when he heard it. A noise that was out of place.

Rekth listened to the sounds of the army around him, his head tilted to the left, his blue eyes carefully analyzing. Footsteps, nearly silent. Drunken raving, loud as normal. Footstep again. Someone was not where they were supposed to be. One creature, of his army or another's, was stalking around Rekth's expansive and expensive tent, as if planning to find their future written somewhere along the outside of the dark material. Of course, Rekth knew who it was, but he also knew that this creature had wanted him to know. There was nothing for it, then, but to invite him in.

"I know you are there, wildcat, and I know you intended for me to know. Don't waste our time. Come in." Rekth's voice was light, almost cheerful, but that was how he always sounded. Few expected the malicious trickery that ran inside his head when his tone was so merry. They expected death from joy, yes, but not manipulation, and manipulation was Rekth's specialty.

The wildcat wasted perhaps another second or so hesitating, perhaps to fake the insinuation that he was nervous, before stepping boldly into the tent. The torch lighting caught him quickly, and dark green eyes narrowed. He looked annoyed by the light, and Rekth, sitting cross-legged atop a table filled with delicacies given to him by his ever-so-loyal soldiers, stared at him quietly, smiling like a welcoming friend while he analyzed the wildcat's every movement.

Oh, he was a smart one, Rekth noticed with a bit of twisted cheer. Brilliant. The wildcat pretended to be just nervous enough that it was almost buyable, but Rekth knew far better than that. One could pretend to be prey as long as one wanted, but the resolute gaze of a predator never truly vanished from the eyes, and that was the place Rekth's always checked first. The wildcat's dark intentions were impossible to guess, but Rekth knew that his intentions probably involved Rekth's own death. After all, the wildcat could see far enough through Rekth's cheerful act to know that it was an act. Ah, yes, the army encampment had just gotten far more interesting. Perhaps, now, this wildcat would kill him before the boredom sucked the life out of the jaded fox.

"What were you doing?" Rekth's voice was content, but tinged with enough suspicion to make the situation seem real. "Surveying my tent for rips?"

"No." His tone was calm, but his reply was volatile. Rekth grinned once more, but, this time, he felt true amusement.

"Most cower in my presence, you know." The fox informed the wildcat with a warning look that was not meant. This was amusing, having someone who did not fear him in the least. It was suicidal for the wildcat, but amusing nonetheless. Because, no matter how bored one got, or how insistently furious at the world one felt, no one really wanted to die. Rekth could tell himself anything he wanted about wanting to die before life got too boring, but if this wildcat tried to kill him, Rekth would take the scythe he had long ago begun to hate and slice the cat's head off without even bothering to think about it. Life was annoying, but it was all Rekth's had, if you really thought about it, and Rekth was not about to let anyone take it from him. Not even a wildcat who was almost as smart as Rekth himself.

Green eyes rolled in annoyance. "And most cringe in mine."

"Do they? Is there a particular reason that you inspire such cowardice? If there is one, I do not see it." Oh, this was entertaining. The wildcat was far more intelligent than the fox had realized, and it was only now occurring to him that this was entirely what the wildcat had wanted. Among the common soldiers, the wildcat had played the part of a mildly intelligent exile, and he had played it well, but now he was changing, taking on another form, and Rekth had no guarantee that this was the wildcat's genuine personality.

"Not one I'm aware of, but, then, I am not too well acquainted with cowardice and what inspires it." The wildcat replied easily and walked over to stare down at the food on the fox's table.

"Are you not?" Rekth inquired. "It takes cowardice to follow, and you have to be a follower to enlist in an army."

"Did you not enlist then? Were you given the position of a general, having never been to war?" The questions were spoken in a voice only vaguely interested, but they were important, and both of them knew it. On the surface, it appeared that the wildcat was implying the fox was a coward. Below the surface, it was so much more.

"I had seen war, and I had benefited from the results, but I had never been a part of it before the Nameless One offered me a position as a general in his army." This was the truth, and that was dangerous. Rekth should have lied, of course, but that would have ruined the game, and a game this was, if a demonically twisted one.

"Why would the Unnamed One name you a general if you had never been to battle?" The wildcat picked an orange up off the table and held it in his paw, staring down at it as if it fascinated him.

"Because I was his assassin for a very long time. Because my father was his first general. Because I grew bored of killing from the shadows. Because he needed someone to balance out the raving lunacy among his other generals." Rekth shrugged dark shoulders. "There were many plausible reasons, but who can guess which one was the truth? The Nameless One's mind is not easy to read."

The wildcat's eyes narrowed as he took in this information, and, for a second that sent an odd sensation of true fear down Rekth's spine, the cat's eyes seemed to laugh. This laugh was not a cheerful laugh, nor was it a comforting one. It was the laugh of a murder finally cornering his victim, of someone finally finding the fault in the enemy he had raged against his entire life. It was the laugh of the cat cornering the mouse and preparing to pounce. But then it was gone, and most would had dismissed it as an illusion cast by the flickering torch light, but Rekth knew better. They were rivals, he and the wildcat, and the wildcat knew something now that Rekth had not meant to revel, and, whatever it was, it had the feel of a fatal mistake.

"No, no, I suppose it is not." The wildcat's tone was dry, the opposite of true laughter. "I have never understood any of his actions, myself. What seems to be suicide is revealed as brilliance."

"I forgot that he was your family's greatest enemy. He never told me what he did to enrage the Warheart family. Do you know?" Rekth knew better than to act as if he had seen the laughter. The wildcat knew something dangerous, and Rekth knew the wildcat knew. If they both kept their secrets, the game would continue.

"Of course I know." The wildcat replied with a shrug of gigantic shoulders, "But they are not my family anymore. They are my enemy now, and they will die eventually for exiling me."

"You will need an army to destroy the Warhearts." Rekth told him calmly, his smile thin and his eyes glittering with faked laughter that looked true. "Did you come for mine?"

It was an unexpected question, and the fact that Rekth could tell revealed how truly unexpected it was. The wildcat had not thought of taking an army, and if he had not thought of that then he had not thought about killing his family at all. At least not near as seriously as he was indicating. Still, the gleam in the cat's eyes told the fox that he liked the idea, so it was not that the wildcat had been pretending to hate his family. It was that something had distracted him from planning vengeance. Something…but what? What could distract one from even thinking about revenge on those that had not only forced you out of your home, but who had also taken your throne from you? What could possibly be interesting enough to distract someone from _that_?

"I came to enlist in the Nameless One's armies." Was his only reply, but it had all kinds of implications.

"To gain in ranks and eventually have an army of your own? And then, what? Were you planning to take that army and go declare war on your family with soldiers not really your own?" These inquiries were not the real questions in Rekth's mind, but to ask the real questions was to end this conversation, and, at the end of this conversation, a decision would be made. It was a decision that would decide who had to die when, among the two in this tent. And it was a decision the wildcat would make, because the fox's decisions had already been decided.

"The Warhearts will benefit from the Nameless One's war for only so long. Eventually they will strike out at him, and I want to be part of the force that kills them. Whether I led it or am a simple foot soldier does not matter to me. My family will die, and I will be there to see it."

Rekth grinned at him and decided to change the subject. "Tell me of these companions of yours: the squirrel who doesn't want to kill, and the otter who loves pain."

And here was when the conversation became even more hazardous. Something in the very atmosphere changed. Rekth had requested something oddly dangerous. That was when it became clear to the fox. The otter and the squirrel were the keys to understanding the wildcat's motivations, because no self-respecting wildcat would travel with the two of them without very good reasons. These were the beasts who had kept the wildcat from plotting his family's death. These two were the keys to everything, and the wildcat knew now that the fox knew. Well, then, it was a trade of secrets. The wildcat knew something about the fox, and the fox knew something about the wildcat.

…

"I would not move, hawk. Not unless you want to die." Darkwing froze, his wings half-extended. Of course, whoever was threatening him might not have a weapon at all, but, when it came to threats, it was always safer to believe that you were in danger. Normally, Darkwing would have whirled around and disposed of this threat, but, with his new hatchlings under a death threat of their own, it was probably not a good idea to risk getting an arrow through his wing, and thus being unable to get to the wildcat before Darkclaw went hunting for the young hawks.

"What do you want?" Darkwing demanded angrily. "I have very urgent business, which I really need to attend to."

"Yes." And then the otter appeared out of the foliage, holding a bow up carefully, arrow notched and ready to fly straight into the hawk's heart. "Yes, I believe you."

Darkwing knew who he was, of course. Few now didn't. "Ghost."

The otter nodded slowly. "Fallen, currently. You're Darkwing. The exiled Warheart Prince's messenger."

Darkwing felt strangely flattered. Going about without knowing about the otter known as Ghost was suicide for the evil beasts and all connected to them, but, while many knew of Darkclaw, far less knew of the hawk that carried his messages. "Yes, I am Darkwing." The hawk revealed in a tone rather calm for one with an arrow pointed at their heart. "Is there a particular reason that you are threatening my life?"

"If I didn't have a weapon, I'm afraid you'd be threatening mine, and such things never end well. I always win, and death is not near as good company as it first appears."

"Someday you will lose." Darkwing replied calmly, his eyes locked not on the arrow, but on the arm that would decide when the arrow was set free.

"Of course. Someday I will die. Someday we will all die, but let's neither of us die today." Suggested the otter with a tone that implied he would have shrugged, if the slightest change in tension might not have set the arrow loose.

"Yes. That sounds fair." Darkwing looked at his wings. He could fly for hours, but just holding his wings out like this was decidedly awkward, and it required the use of muscles he rarely bothered utilizing. The hawk could stay like this for a very long time, but it was annoying, and his muscles did not exactly appreciate the strangeness of it.

"Put your wings away, hawk. We will be talking for a very long time, and these it no need for you to stay like that." The otter frowned, "And I'm going to stop this idiocy of holding my bow up, and you aren't going to attack me, because, if you do, I will have to kill you, and I have been tracking you for weeks. You would not appreciate being dead, and I would not appreciate the wasted time."

"Of course I won't attack you." Darkwing told him, rather offended at the idea, as he ruffled his wings and brought them back to his body. "I'm a hawk, not a wildcat. I have no interest in attacking well-armed otters."

"Yet, you will still carry the Warheart's letters?" Fallen seemed very interested by this as he brought his bow down, placing the arrow back in the quiver on his back, but not, Darkwing noticed, unstringing the bow.

"I have no choice." Darkwing responded. "I swore to, long ago."

"Why?"

"Whatever information you want, I doubt it is about me and my personal oaths. As I told you before, I am rather in a hurry right now, so ask what you want, and let me go." Darkwing was not a wildcat, it was true, but he had his pride, and his business.

The otter smiled tightly at this. "Is it that hard to admit? It doesn't please your pride, does it? That you have to serve the wildcat like a common piece of vermin scum?" It was rather alarming, how the otter could read his mind.

"You ask many pointless questions, for one who has been searching for me for weeks." Was Darkwing's only reply, and even that was spoken in quick, harsh way.

"They are not pointless, hawk. I have learned much simply from what you refuse to answer." The otter's smile was broad, but more like a wince then a genuine expression of joy.

"You are not what the legends say you are." It wasn't a very brutal insult, but it was the truth, and, judging by the way the otter's smile turned into a frown, it was hurtful enough.

"The legends promise perfection. I have heard them told myself. Did you think the lies were true? Did you think any form of perfection could be a reality?"

"What is it you want to know, otter? The wildcat is secretive, and I do not read his messages. I cannot tell you anything about him that you probably do not already know."

The otter nodded, his eyes flashing quietly. "I am aware of that, but it's not the wildcat I am interested in knowing about. It's the otter that travels with him that interests me."

…

"What's this? A squirrel?" Root heard the statement, spoken in a tone that hinted at future violence, but he was not about to stop for it. Anger and confusion were devouring his insides, and Root had no time for anything in the world but his own thoughts.

"A squirrel in our army?" Another voice, mocking and uneducated.

"No squirrel's gonna join our army, mate. Even their kind's not stupid enough fer that." The annoyingly stupid voices and the blatant insults to his kind made Root's skin twitch, but he wasn't about to stop, no. He had no time left for this. No time left for anything in the world.

"Is 'e ignoring us?" The second voice, sounding disbelieving. Of course. Idiots and egocentrics traveled in packs, after all. What a wonderful world it was, truly.

"I think he is." The first voice. This one liked to state the obvious, apparently.

"Let's teach him what happens to beasts that ignore us." Suggested the third voice, full of wicked laughter. Oh, but Root really did not have the time to spare for these idiots.

One of them jumped at him, and that's when the rational, moral, scared-to-death-and-beyond Root just evaporated and something bitter, sadistic, and fearless took over. The squirrel caught hold of the one who jumped at him, and used his own momentum against him, sending him several yards further than the jumper had planned on, and straight into a tree. With a roar, another lunged at him, and the squirrel jumped up, managing, somehow, to connect his foot with the stupid weasel's stomach in midair. When he landed, he found the third beast, a ferret, prancing around idiotically with a knife. It took seconds to break the wrist attached to the paw holding the dagger, and even less to knock the ferret over and pin him down.

Of course, Root would have stopped there, if he had fought at all, but this _thing_ inside him was far from content. He slammed his paws over and over into the face of the ferret, laughing aloud at the interrupted screams and pleas, as he kept hitting him. It was crazy. It was a waste of energy. It was sadistic. It was stupid. It was fun.

He kept punching, far after the ferret was unconscious, listening only vaguely to the screams and the footfalls behind him. Suddenly, though, someone was pulling him off, pulling him away from the unconscious ferret. Root struggled, but it was a losing battle, because suddenly he was Root again, and all he wanted was to go home. If he had a home to go to, that is.

"Stupid squirrel!" Snapped a slightly familiar voice. "You'll die for this!"

"Get off me!" Root growled, the aftershocks of pure sadistic rage still running freely though his mind, and he slammed his elbow back into the face of whomever it was that held him. To say the least, this did not help his situation. Whoever it was released him and seven incredibly burly, incredibly intimidating beasts, grabbed him and pulled him down, pinning him to the ground like he had pinned the ferret. To be fair, they probably did not hit him anywhere near as hard as he had hit the ferret, but there were seven more of them than there had been of him, and they used their feet as well as their fists.

"Enough! Stop it!" Growled whoever had pulled him off the ferret about thirty seconds to late to save Root from serious physical harm. The seven beasts stopped hitting him, and pulled him up to his feet, holding him up because they knew as well as he did that his vision was swimming and he could not have stood on his own if his life depended on it.

It was the fox. The female one. Aysini. She looked livid, her lips drawn back to bear her fangs, and her golden eyes gleaming wrathfully. "You _stupid_ squirrel!" She hissed. "We should rip your flesh from your bones and pry out those tortured eyes of yours. We should break your bones and shove them down the throats of your _companions_!"

Root bore his fangs in defiance, what was left of his brain swimming with anger. "Threats waste air, fox. If you're going to do something, _do it_." He suggested defiantly, made brave by the fact that his brain was so severely rattled it refused to feel fear.

The grips on his arms became so tight he nearly screamed. He could feel his bones bending. The fox stalked forward and grabbed his jaw, peering into his eyes as if she could see into his darkest memories and read his tormented mind. Whatever she found there seemed to startle and anger her. She slapped viciously him, drew away, and spat onto the sand.

"What kind of devil wears the skin of an innocent?" She growled at him, her paws clenched so tightly she drew her own blood. "What manner of demon are you?" She demanded loudly.

"The kind that doesn't like being threatened and held by the likes of _you_ and your _army_!" Root growled back, struggling uselessly against the seven burly beasts and muting the mewl of pain as their viciously rigid grips became even tighter. Obviously, he wasn't quite himself currently. The moral Root seemed slow to come forward, while the sadistic anger was even slower to fade away. He was a mixture, now, and it was oddly comfortable.

Aysini laughed at this, and her laugh was sadistic and dangerous. "If you were mine and not Rekth's I would torture you until you became useless, because you are far too hazardous to power as you are now. If those were my creatures lying dead, I would rip out your heart and feed it to my captains. But I will not, for they are Kislin's and every one of his creatures needs to be cleansed of their cowardice and stupidity with fire, for that is the only thing that can purify them. They need to be burned, every one of them, and if I must content myself with burning the dead bodies of those that were stupid enough to attack you in such small numbers, then I will do it. But, beware, squirrel, because by killing his creatures you have become an enemy of him and, weak as he his, he is not brainless. His daggers will slip into your back very soon."

"Then let his daggers come for me, and let me _go_!" Root ordered shrilly, the creatures holding his arms so tightly they were crushing his ribcage.

"Drop him, younglings. His faithless hide will contaminate yours." Aysini ordered, and the seven beasts dropped Root so quickly he fell backwards. They left him there, going to pick up the three creatures who had attacked Root. It was only then that the squirrel realized they were all dead.

"I killed them?" Root questioned stupidly, staying where he was: on his back on the ground. After all, standing up required muscles he wasn't sure were still attached to bone.

Aysini stalked over to stare down at him, golden eyes glittering coldly in the pale light of the moon. "A villain behind the mask of a victim." She muttered quietly. "But, what is more ironic? That the mask has become the wearer, or that the truth has become a mask?"

"Do all foxes speak in riddles?" Root demanded listlessly, attempting to cover terror with anger.

"Return to your camp, squirrel. My creatures desire death, and your bitter words have no power over us." She whirled away. "Come, children, let us purify the dead!" She commanded harshly, and led her corpse-carrying followers away with the haughtiness of knowledge and the danger of belief.

…

Darkclaw wandered back into the tent at least an hour after he had left. Redsplash eyed him with irritation and suspicion, but, if he noticed, he certainly did not care. He was holding an orange in his paw, which the otter found particularly odd, but was not moving to throw it away or eat it. In fact, it appeared almost as if he had forgotten it was there. An arrogant smile and smug laughing eyes showed far more emotional than the wildcat usually revealed, and that in itself was ominous. Ominous enough to drag Redsplash out of her self-imposed silence, even.

"What're you so happy about?" Redsplash demanded angrily, glaring at him with a hate she did not feel. Not for him. Not right now.

"Things your mind would never be able to comprehend." Darkclaw returned mockingly, his eyes flickering to hers for only a second before he glanced down at the orange in his paw.

"You have no idea what my mind can comprehend." Redsplash growled.

"I don't?" Darkclaw inquired. "What makes you think that?"

"Because there is no way you could." Redsplash replied darkly. "Do you think you can see into my mind, Darkclaw? Are you a mind reader now?"

"The word 'reader' would imply books. Books would imply knowledge. Looking into your mind, Redsplash, is like looking into a mirror. It is empty except for the reflections your own self casts on it." Darkclaw retorted, tossing the orange away and watching it hit the ground as if this simple act was shaping the lives of thousands.

"Speaking in riddles now, Darkclaw?" Redsplash demanded.

"For you, yes, they would be riddles. For anyone of intelligence they would be something else entirely." Redsplash was offended, of course, and would have come up with some angry retort, but, at that very moment, Root stumbled into the tent.

It looked, as Redsplash pointed out later, that Root had found himself a rather large tree he didn't like the location of and had attempted to beat it to a different spot in the landscape, using his body. His arms were bruised, and there were several scrapes on his ribs that were bleeding sluggishly. A large bump on his skull was forming, while the area around his right eye was swelling. His nose leaked blood, while he limped on his left leg. His clothing was torn, his tail was cut on several different places, and his left ear had a slight tear in his. Somehow, though, he still managed to look perfectly pleased with himself and completely terrified at the same time.

"What did you do to yourself, squirrel?" Darkclaw demanded coldly, raising a brow, and obviously wondering if the company he traveled with could possibly get any stupider.

Redsplash grinned wickedly over at him. "Did your conscience beat you up?"

Root sent her a glare. "It's none of your business what I did. Now, if you don't mind, I'm going to go nurse my wounds in _private_."

"Do you have any idea how to?" Redsplash inquired, mock-innocently. "Nurse those terrible wounds of yours, I mean."

"No, but I imagine it can't be that hard to learn." Root told her. "Now, kindly remove yourself from my way so I don't have to limp around you on my way to the pillows."

"Some of those cuts could get infected, you know. The one on your ear, for instance. Wouldn't that be nasty, Root? You ear would have to be chopped off. Oh, or the ones on your tail! You could be a squirrel without a tail!" Redsplash seemed to find this hilarious. Root glared at her, and limped past her, looked very much offended. He settled himself of the pillows and looked helplessly at a long gash on his forearm. For a few seconds he seemed completely confused as to what to do and then it appeared as if he was trying very hard to think about something. His expression was very comical, and Redsplash snorted, but abruptly, a look of enlightenment crossed his features. He went about bandaging himself in a way far too efficient for one who had, only seconds ago, admitted to not knowing how to heal.

It was odd, and Redsplash did not like it. She did not like the way the entire tent seemed full now as if there was no more room to breathe. With a glare at both the wildcat and the squirrel, she stalked out.

"Not in a very pleasant mood tonight, is she?" Root questioned mildly.

"Are you?" Darkclaw returned, frowning over at him.

"Of course not." Root shrugged. "But am I ever?"

Darkclaw snorted. "I would like to know why she brought us here. Thinks she will have a better chance killing the badger lord with an army, does she? She would have had a better chance by herself."

"What? Why?" This was an alarming bit of knowledge, indeed.

"Badgers are honorable creatures. All she had to do was play the part of a poor injured otter maid lost and far from home and the badger would have welcomed him into her cave like a long lost cub. Then she could have waited until darkness, or until no hare was about, crept into the badger's chamber, and killed him in his sleep." Darkclaw shrugged.

"You could have mentioned this _before_ we traveled for _days_ **_and_** _nights_ to get to an army!" Root snapped, very much angry at this revelation. _And before I had to kill some hare._ He added silently, scowling.

"Oh, but why? So that she could carry through with that idea? That would please her thirst for vengeance, do you think? No, little squirrel, she wants every hare dead. And, after that, she'll still be angry. She wants them all dead, and, besides, the badger's death is mine to give, remember?"

"You're a bit obsessed with that, aren't you?" Root inquired, definitely not liking the way this conversation was going.

"With what?" Darkclaw replied, looking over at him curiously.

"Killing the badger lord."

"Not quite obsessed." Darkclaw shrugged. "But, for lack of a better word, you could call it that."

"I think I will, then." Root told him, frowning.

Darkclaw smirked over at him. "Get some sleep, squirrel. We're marching tomorrow, you know. This army is headed to Salamandastron, after all. Marching tired is rather unpleasant. I doubt you'd be able to survive it."

Root rolled his eyes. "You have no idea what I can survive, wildcat."

Darkclaw laughed then, almost as if this was the most hilarious thing uttered in all time. "Squirrel," Darkclaw said when finally he could stop laughing, "I have a far better idea than you do of what you can and cannot survive."

…

"We are moving far to slow." Aysini told the other four captains, bearing white teeth in aggravation. "We should have already reached the mountain! Days ago, we should've reached it!"

"Don't blame me, fox." The weasel general, Kislin, objected. "Kani is supposed to be scouting the area! It's _his_ fault we're not moving faster!"

Kani, his rat face twisted in anger, spat at the ground. "My parties would move faster if _your_ hunting parties brought back enough food! My scouts have to gather food!"

"There is no reason for that." Devman, the stoat general, snapped. "The hunting parties bring back more than enough game, and _you_ certainly don't look like you're starving away."

"He doesn't, does he?" Rekth joked, smirking at the slightly obese rat.

"You stole captives from me!" Kani snapped, waggling a paw at him. "Don't you _dare_ to mock me now!"

"I didn't steal your captives." Rekth corrected. "All captives belong to me, by rights. You have no captives. They're all mine."

"Greedy little…" Kani mumbled crossly to himself, scowling viciously the entire time.

"Greedy little what?" Rekth prompted. "Was there anything that you were going to say to me, Kani? Anything at all?"

Kani's face ballooned with anger. "I was going to say-"

"Enough!" Aysini bellowed. "Fighting with each other will get us nowhere. Either we stop acting like fools or I challenge all of you to combat, and, when I kill you all, I will take over."

"Aysini, I could never fight with _you_." Rekth replied, grinning widely. "I value my pride too much. Only think how stupid I'll feel when you burn my corpse because I'm so impure."

"Now is not the time for your _jokes_, Rekth." Aysini growled.

"My rats would never answer to _you_." Kani growled. "No _female_ would rule them!"

"I'm afraid my beasts wouldn't be to enthusiastic on the idea either. Loyal to me alone and all that nonsense." Rekth admitted, smiling broadly.

"I do not want to rule your tainted _beasts_." Aysini growled. "My only wish is to get to the mountain quickly so that I may satisfy my children's hunger. They demand blood, in large quantities, and very soon. Do any of you want to quench my children's thirst?"

Silence reigned for several long seconds, and then Rekth piped up. "Well, er, no. Not myself. Not particularly. Perhaps Devman…"

"Silence, fox." Devman snapped. "Your jokes are not funny."

"_I_ think they are." Rekth argued.

"You four are fools. I have no time for you." Aysini snapped and vanished in a swirl of dark-colored fur and an even darker cloak.

"Well, there you have it. The meeting is officially over with. Pleasant dreams all around, eh?" And, with that, Rekth left them too, his grin firmly in place though, inside, he was dreadfully irate.

"Those two are the fools." Devman snapped. "We would have been at the mountain weeks ago if not for their stupid actions."

"Of course, but what can we do? That vixen's a demon and the other fox isn't much better." Kislin replied, shaking his head. "We've got nothing to do but try to get along with 'em. Otherwise, we'll find his scythe in our back. He was an assassin, once. He could kill all of us in our sleep."

"I'd like to see him try it with me." Kani growled, his paw going to the hilt of his sword. "I'd slit that one's throat before he could even draw breath to utter one of those _jokes_ of his."


	9. Chapter Nine

((Ok, ok, I know. I took forever. I went on vacation. Long, nice, draining, chaotic, vacation. It was lovely, and it was hell. Eh, you know how it goes. I might be leaving again late this month. I'll try and get at least one more chapter up before then.

So, let's see, I added more flesh to Fallen's character skeleton, did the same to all the generals, and killed off a character. This chapter's rather productive, and I wrote half of it before I left and half of it after I got home, so it feels a bit weird sometimes. I really should work on my death scenes, there's going to be a lot more and they just get worse as I go along. I also didn't edit this much so beware.))

The sunrise was brutal. Fallen watched it from the top of a mountain, his green eyes taking the beginning of the day in quietly, calmly. It looked almost as if he were the reason the sun were rising. Almost as if the otter was calling it forth. He stood nearly as still as the mountain he had climbed early this morning, his eyes narrowing slightly against the burst of light. Long days had passed since he had spoken with the hawk. Long, bitter days. Fallen shook his head, turning away from the sunrise. Let the sun rise on its own today.

He had been forced to make a difficult decision. A full season ago he had let the otter, Redsplash, go free. Now, he knew that it had been a mistake. The only reason he had allowed her to live was the hope he felt that she might still be Brighteye, just hiding under another name. No…now he knew it wasn't true. Gone to kill a badger lord? And why? Because a ferret had been killed. Oh, he remembered the ferret. Remembered the bastard well. Son of a warlord; son of a coward. Fallen snorted, shaking his head.

Redsplash had gone mad. No otter in their right mind challenged a badger. He should have expected it, though. After all, what otter in their right mind befriended a ferret and traveled freely in the presence of a Warheart prince? Still, he did not understand. Once, she had not appeared to be insane. Perhaps it was the ferret that had kept her sane, though how that made sense Fallen didn't know. This entire situation was far too confusing.

It had taken him days to come to a decision. It was a decision he regretted, but regret was to be expected. He was, after all, planning on murdering another beast. Only fools and maniacs did not regret the loss of life. Still, it would be far better for Redsplash to die than for the badger lord to be slaughtered. If Salamandastron fell, then the entire continent would not manage much better. No. The badger had to survive, and Redsplash had to die. It was simple, really, but it was the simple things that always hurt the most.

There was a slight problem with this whole matter of killing Redsplash…the simple problem being half a continent and a rather large river known for its volatile rapids dividing the otter from his prey. Of course. It would be a terrible tragedy for him to save lives, wouldn't it? Fate had to place as many obstacles in his path as possible. Days like this almost made his whole life seem worthless.

Fallen snorted at his own cheerless thoughts and quickened his pace, practically throwing himself down the steep hill. He knew that he would not fall. He hadn't lived through as many battles and suicidal jaunts as he had without knowing his limits. Still, he was pushing himself. Even he had limits, and he knew them well. It wasn't like he had time to take care of himself anymore, though. With the entire world in danger, who was he to attempt to keep himself healthy?

He knew why he was thinking this way. It was an easy enough answer to a very complex question. Oh, yes, he knew very well he did not want to kill Redsplash. Knew it better than he knew his own name, which he had not used in seasons. He didn't want to kill anyone, but he really did not want to kill Redsplash. A season ago, he had not been able to do it. Now, he knew he had to. It did not rest easy on his mind, though, and his mind made sure he knew it.

…

Rekth sagged into his chair and sighed heavily, leaning his head back. Marching was hell. Today one of Kani's rats had started a brawl that had enveloped even Devman's normally perfect soldiers at the noon mealtime. Only Aysini's army had refused to join in, gathering around their general as if she could not protect herself. Of course, it had all been blamed on Rekth. Despite the fact that Kani's rat had thrown the first punch, all the generals blamed Redsplash, saying she had instigated the entire thing by insulting the rat's facial features and general ancestral heritage.

The generals had called a meeting, and had, somehow, decided it was going to be in Rekth's tent. None of them were here now, which was good. Rekth needed a certain amount of time to himself after marching. Otherwise, he was a complete beast. He smirked at that, tilting his head forward so he could stare at the opening of the tent. The two ferrets that normally constructed his tent in nearly a minute had taken around five today. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that both of their right arms were in slings. Rekth hadn't paused to ask.

The first general to arrive was Devman, and the stoat came carrying a flask in each paw. He handed one to Rekth before removing the top from the other one and swallowing gratefully. Rekth stared doubtfully down at the flask, frowning lightly. "I'll just pray to the gods this is poison." He muttered quietly and took a quick sip.

"Pray hard." Devman responded. "For the both of us."

Rekth rolled his eyes and lowered the flask to the top of the table. Only the most powerful poisons could kill him after such a small sip, and Rekth knew all the most powerful poisons by taste and smell. He had, after all, been the best assassin alive when he had been in that business. After a certain amount of time he would drink more. As much as he talked about suicide, he was not one to let a simple thing like poison kill him.

Aysini was the next to arrive, and she was livid. She carried a foreboding-looking axe in her left paw and her golden eyes glittered with fury. Only a glance was spared for the two other generals before she began pacing furiously around the tent, looking ready to cleave skulls with that axe of hers. Rekth wondered calmly what she had to be so angry about. After all, none of her beasts had even been injured in the brawl.

Kislin came scurrying in after, eyes tripling in size when they fell upon the furious fox and her axe. He waited nervously for her to pass by before darting over to stand by Devman, the only general he even pretended to get along with. Of course, all the generals liked Devman. Devman was in control of the alcohol, and was nearly as free with it as he was with his contempt for the rest of them. Kislin glanced at the flask in Devman's paws and Devman handed it to the weasel calmly. Kislin brought it to his lips and drank greedily before handing it quickly back to the stoat. Devman shook the flask and, upon realizing how little was left, sent a long look at Kislin who shrugged and smiled nervously. Devman sighed and finished off the liquid in the flask before putting the flask in one of the numerous pockets of that long cloak her always wore.

When Kani finally arrived, a full ten minutes after Kislin did, Rekth had to fight the laughter back hard, though he did allow a smile to form on his face. The rat's entire right arm was wrapped in a bandage and held in a sling. The top half of his skull was wrapped in bandage, too, and it made him look quite ridiculous. Once setting eyes on the smiling Rekth, Kani's paws clenched into fists, and he waved them waved it at the fox. "This is all _your_ fault!" The rat bellowed.

"_My_ fault?" Rekth inquired, his tone and expression one of surprised innocence. "How is your inability to keep yourself whole in a battle _my_ fault?"

"I should kill you where you sit, fox." Kani informed Rekth coldly.

Rekth smiled, his smile cheerful, but his eyes devoid of warmth. "You should try, so that I could rid the world of you and your grotesque appearance."

"_Enough_!" Aysini shouted, coming to a stop with her axe clutched to her like a cub would clutch a stuffed toy. "I am tired of you filthy fools and your soiled minds. Your very being disgusts me. You should have been cleansed of your filth long ago!"

Rekth spread his arms out wide in a disarming pose. "Then, by all means, Aysini," He told her solemnly. "Cleanse me."

"Stop being such an idiot, Rekth." Devman ordered. "The brawl was your fault."

"Completely your fault." Kislin agreed.

"Was not." Rekth argued, frowning lightly. "Kani's rat started it."

"Did not." Kani snapped.

Rekth smirked, and purposefully answered as any cub would. "Did too."

"**_Fools_**!" Aysini's input was less than helpful.

"Someday someone's gonna put a blade right into that impudent skull of yours." Kani told Rekth coldly.

"Aye, someday. But that day is not today, and that blade is not yours." Rekth replied calmly. "Besides, why does it matter whose fault the brawl was? The point is that it happened. What are we going to do about it?"

"Nothing. Let those stupid enough to be injured learn the price of their actions." Devman suggested. "Make them march wounded."

"Yes." Kislin agreed.

"I've got an idea for you." Rekth told Kislin calmly. "How 'bout you stop letting Devman here think for you, and try to come up with some ideas for yourself? You're a general, mate. You've got to have some ideas packed away in your mind somewhere. Come on. Let 'em out to play."

"This is not a game, Rekth." Aysini intoned viciously. "If this were a game, it would not matter who won or lost. This is war, and the winner is all that matters."

"Aw, come, Aysini. Is that what you really think?" Rekth inquired. "I prefer to think it's not whether your side wins or loses, just that you come out alive in the end."

Aysini's lip twitched in disgust. "You _would_ think that, Rekth. Worm that you are."

"Worm? I am clearly a fox." Rekth's tail snapped forward and waved at Aysini. "See the bushy tail?"

"We need to talk seriously, Rekth." Kislin remarked poisonously. "If we need to remove you from here to do so, then so be it."

"Grew a brain, did you?" Rekth asked. "Or just a spine?"

"_Rekth_!" Devman growled. "Stop being so foolish. You must know by now that every day we spend wallowing around here is another day the badger prepares for our coming. We are planning to launch a siege, fox. What point would there be to a siege if they already have enough food to last for seasons?"

"I thought that would be a rather simple problem." Rekth remarked with a shrug. "Either was gather up all the surrounding innocent little creatures and keep sending 'em into the mountain, because the badger lord really couldn't refuse a hungry mouse, and would have to feed them." Here Rekth paused to sip from the flask he had decided was not poisonous. "_Or_ we send someone in to poison all the food stores. Really, I would think it rather simple."

Kani's eyes narrowed at him. "And who would be stupid enough to sneak into the mountain and poison all the food? That's a suicidal idea if I ever heard one."

Rekth blinked at him. "In case it has escaped your notice, friend rat, we have a squirrel and an otter in our army, along with several little hostages who will do anything we ask them to do as long as we don't torture their little friends to death. Personally, I don't think getting a creature into the mountain will be very hard. Getting them out might be a _bit_ more difficult, but I doubt it."

"What exactly are you suggesting?" Devman asked.

"Well, we could send someone in to poison the supplies and then leave…" Rekth suggested with a shrug. "Or we could send someone in to spy around for a while, figure out what's going on, _then_ poison the supplies and leave."

"As long as that damn otter goes in, I don't care." Kani growled.

"That's two votes for it." Rekth remarked without batting an eye.

"A spy is always a good idea." Devman muttered. "I vote for it."

"So do I." Kislin agreed almost half a second after Devman.

"What I surprise. Kislin and Devman on the same side." Rekth mused quietly, before turning to Aysini. "And what is your answer, Aysini?"

"My answer does not matter, Rekth." Aysini growled. "In a vote of five, the fifth vote only matters if it is a tie."

"Lovely way of looking on it there." Rekth muttered. "Bloody pessimist."

"What?" Aysini growled, lifting her axe ominously.

"Oh, nothing." Rekth told her with a shrug. "Just commenting to myself on the lovely shade of your eyes. 'Golden loveliness' I said."

Aysini snorted at him. "Soiled beast." She muttered. "Dirty as the day you were brought screaming into this world."

"Well, what can I say? Worms like me always did love the dirt." Rekth told her with only the slightest annoyance in his tone.

"Rekth…" Devman began, his tone threatening.

"What?" Rekth demanded, finally letting the stupid smile slip from his features. "Really, what? What is there to talk about anymore? We don't enjoy each other's company, obviously. I'm not keeping you here. You can all leave now."

"The riot-" Kani began.

"Was started by your own rat, so I would stop bringing it up." Rekth interrupted, scowling lightly.

"Your _otter_, who shouldn't even _be_ in your army, started that brawl." Kani argued.

"Shouldn't even be in my army?" Rekth questioned, leaning back against his chair. "And why is that?"

"Because she's an _otter_." Kislin offered with a roll of his brown eyes.

"And what's wrong with that?" Rekth asked quietly.

"Otters are _good_." Kislin informed him.

"You're generalizing." Rekth retorted, his tone very quiet indeed, but still audible.

"What?" Kislin looked as if he was trying to decide if he should be offended or not.

"It's like saying all weasels kill for pleasure, or that all apples are delicious. You get pacifistic weasels and wormy apples. Otters can be just as bad as any of us could be."

"No. There's a difference between otters, mice, shrews, squirrels, badgers, hares, an' all the rest and us ferrets, weasels, foxes, stoats, wildcats, and all of 'em. _We_ are superior species. _We_ can choose if we want to be good or bad. _Otters_ and the rest like 'em are inferior. _They_ are born to be something, and they _can't change it_." Devman snapped, scowling.

With a shriek of some word that none of the other generals understood, Aysini slammed her axe into the table. It stuck there, and she did not try to pull it out. "_You_," She began at a shout, "Are _all_ **_inferior_**! You waste my time." And with that she turned and stalked out so angrily that, for a very long time, none of the generals spoke.

"Where's she goin'?" Kani demanded.

"I dunno. Why don't you go ask her?" Rekth suggested sarcastically. He knew as well as the others did that she would probably kill the next beast to approach her.

"I need to see how many of my army was wounded in that little riot today." Devman remarked and left quickly, but at least without sticking any weaponry in the table.

"So do I." Kislin agreed, and followed Devman a little less calmly.

Rekth and Kani exchanged glances. Rekth smiled, about to make some remark that would have sent the rat into a weapon waving fury, but Kani turned and stalked out. Apparently, Kani was leaning. Which was too bad, really, because now Rekth had no one to bait. Sad, how things were turning out.

"Another lovely meeting called to a close far too early. Damn." Rekth muttered and looked at the axe buried in his table, wondering how, exactly, he was supposed to deal with that.

…

Aysini approached her army's camp, fuming and furious. Immediately, her children surrounded her, murmuring to her and amongst themselves. They were very thirsty for blood, they told her. Desired it above all else. Aysini exchanged glances with her captains, and found that even they were starting to lose their precious control. The golden-eyed fox scowled, unable to believe that things had gotten this drastic. They would not arrive at the mountain for another three days or so, and, already, her creatures were getting jittery. Only bad could come from this.

"Aysini! _Oh, **Ay-sini**_!" Came Rekth's annoyingly upbeat voice. Aysini considered ordering her children to kill him, but there would be little to no point in that.

"What is it that you want?" Aysini demanded, refusing even to turn around to face him.

"I brought your army something. Two somethings, actually. A little gift from my army to yours." Rekth informed her, sounding very pleased with himself, indeed.

Aysini whirled around quickly, preparing to yank his head right off his body, when she saw that he had brought two of his captives with him. Both were mice and both were young, perhaps halfway through youth. The two captives looked terrified out of their wits, teeth drawn back to show fangs in a grimace of terror.

Aysini approached, her children falling back to follow like her shadow. She reached Rekth, but ignored him for a while, staring at the two captives he had brought with him. Finally, though, she looked at the blue-eyed fox. "What is this?" She demanded, her tone very quiet.

"Well, we caught these two tryin' to break out of their cages during the riot, and I was a bit too tired to come up with the proper torture-to-death thingy to scare the others into obedience, so I thought I'd just bring them on over to you. You being so good at those purifying rituals of yours, and all. All I ask is that after your army's done with 'em, you deposit the bodies near the other captives, so they'll learn their lesson."

Aysini could practically feel the bloodlust rising in her beasts. Strange, that Rekth had known of the danger all the armies were in. Oh, he pretended to be a fool, but he knew far more than he ever let on. Perhaps more than she did herself, about some things, anyway. She could see the knowledge in the other fox's eyes as he scanned the creatures of her army. He knew very well that if he hadn't brought these two for her army, some from the other armies had have been taken. And he knew very well the danger he was in, staying behind for even a second after offering two hostages.

"We will take them, but only as a favor to you." Aysini remarked coldly. "A favor I except to be paid back, sometime."

Rekth stared at her for a while. "A favor then, and hope that all such favors for me are so beneficial to you." And with that he left quickly, dropping the chains and the keys to the chains on the terrain that was half sand and half grass, and strolling away, a bit too quickly for his usual lazy self. Aware of the danger he was in, that one. Aysini would have to watch him closer.

…

"Damn, that hurts." Redsplash hissed, staring at the white bandage that circled her right forearm, a bit too tightly.

"You're not gonna get any sympathy from me." Root informed her coldly, his tone still a bit nasal due to the punch in the nose he's received nearly ten hours ago. "This is all your fault."

"Is not." Redsplash countered angrily. "Why does everyone keep saying that?"

"Because it _is_." Root snapped. "I got punched _in the nose_ by a stoat the size of _Darkclaw_, and it's _all your fault_!"

"Little bristly, aren't we?" Redsplash inquired darkly. "Must be all the bandages that you've got."

Root rolled over on the mountain of pillows he had constructed to glare at Redsplash. "Don't even start that, Redsplash. You know that I've been in two fights in the past couple days."

"Who's fishing for sympathy now?" Redsplash questioned, smirking like she knew all the secrets in the world.

"Both of you be quiet before I rip your guts out through your eye sockets." Darkclaw threatened furiously from his corner of the tent where he was staring disgustedly at the gash on his stomach.

Silence reigned over the tent for a while and Root snorted, shoving violently at the pillows until he found himself a comfortable spot. He rested his head against a particularly fluffy one, and closed his angry green eyes, thinking that now, finally, he would catch up on that sleep he had lost.

"Aw, come on, Darky. Tell us who beat you up." Redsplash cajoled, and Root scowled, his eyes popping open to glare at her.

Darkclaw stood up slowly, turning to pin her with his gaze. For a second, Redsplash actually looked intimidated, and then she grinned at him. "I was not beaten, otter." The wildcat informed her coldly.

"Then how come you got yourself a wound?" Redsplash asked calmly, smirking.

"I would have thought a bit more before asking that question, otter. You yourself have a wound." Darkclaw pointed out, his tone frigid.

"Well, yes, but I got it fightin'. I didn't see you doin' much fighting." Redsplash retorted lazily.

"That's because there was no point to it." Darkclaw replied, his eyes narrowing slightly. "It was not my fight and I saw no point to wasting my energy. After that merry little march you lead us on to get here, I have little enough as it is."

Redsplash glared at him, all humor draining from her features. "Poor little Darkclaw. All tired out after a few days of walking. Do your need your mommy to tuck you in and kiss you goodnight?"

With a noise that was most definitely a roar and equally as definitely not comforting, Darkclaw lunged across the tent and grabbed Redsplash by the front of her shirt, lifting her up as easily as Root could lift one of these pillows. "In case you have forgotten, Redsplash, my mother is dead." He remarked, his tone surprisingly calm. "And, since your memory seems to be failing, I'll forgive you for your arrogance and impudence. Do it again, though, and I'll rip out your eyes. The Nameless One would pay richly for you, eyes or not, and I grow increasingly bored of you and your disgusting existence."

He held her up for a second longer and then threw her down on the uncomfortable floor of the tent. With a tiny little growl of annoyance, he stalked back over to his tent, stealing several of the pillows Root wasn't really using on the way, and made himself a nest, settling into it angrily. The white bandage blazed against his dark fur right up until a pillow hid it from view. For a while it seemed that he was asleep, but Root knew he was not. When he was really asleep, Darkclaw appeared dead. Right now, Root could see the wildcat's torso moving every time the cat breathed.

Redsplash lay on the floor, propped up on her elbows, and stared at Darkclaw silently for a while. At first, Root thought she was angry, or, at least, surprised. But, no. The otter wasn't surprised at all. Instead, she seemed almost pleased. A deranged smile had commandeered her face, and, for a second, she seemed completely insane. And then she met Root's eyes, and all traces of insanity drained from her. Without making a sound, she slipped out of the tent, and was gone once again. She was doing that a lot these days.

With a muted sigh, Root rolled around until he found a more comfortable spot on his mountain of pillows. This entire journey was getting uncomfortably dangerous. That voice in his mind had quieted lately, though it kept bursting in at strange moments. For entire minutes it seemed to take over him completely, and he found himself truly happy for the first time since he could remember. Something about that dark, pain-loving, voice in his mind seemed far more _real_ than this half-terrified half-confused mindset of his. And, whatever it was, it got very happy very quickly when it was in control again.

"Darkclaw?" Root asked quietly. If the wildcat really wanted to pretend he was asleep, Root knew better than to bother him. On annoying the wildcat, both voices agreed that it was a bad idea.

"What is it, squirrel?" At least the wildcat didn't sound as annoyed as he did when speaking with the otter.

"What do you know about me?" Root rolled his eyes and then clarified. "About my past, I mean."

For a while there was silence, and Root was very sure he wasn't going to answer. "Not nearly as much as I should. You were very secretive. I suppose I knew more than most outsiders. Probably all the outsiders. I know you hated yourself, if that helps any."

Root made a face that the wildcat couldn't have seen in the dying light of sunset. "Stop playing the idiot, Darkclaw. I know what you're doing."

"_Do_ you?" Darkclaw inquired, suddenly sounding very different, almost surprised. It suddenly came to Root's attention that he had never heard Darkclaw sounding surprised. The wildcat always seemed to know everything about anything, and exactly what was about to happen. For some strange reason, Root was proud that he had almost surprised the wildcat. "Then you're progressing far too fast. You're in for some pretty dangerous outbreaks if you don't slow yourself down. I would suggest very strong herbal teas. Your mind is not at all prepared for the real you to come out of its shell."

"You know what my mind's prepared for, do you?" Root asked, unable to keep the sarcasm out of his voice.

"Better than you do. Of course, if I'm wrong then you'll just be yourself and that will be bad enough. If I'm right you'll be turned into a gibbering idiot mumbling nonstop nonsense, probably unable even to feed yourself. You'll starve, of course. The otter isn't about to take care of you, and I'm just not about to care."

"_Lovely_ bedtime story. Can't wait 'till you have children of your own, Darkclaw. You could scare 'em senseless every night." Root muttered dryly and, once again, searched out a comfortable spot. "I'll ask you properly when I can think straight. Sleep, now, I think."

"I think if you don't sleep now you'll faint due to fatigue." Darkclaw replied calmly.

"Eh. Either way, sounds lovely." Root mumbled and was asleep around half a second after speaking. Darkclaw smirked, rolled his eyes, and let go of consciousness, allowing himself to sleep into a light sleep. His body was demanding a very deep sleep, but with Redsplash murderous and missing, now was not the time to give in to what his health was demanding. Maybe he would sleep deeply later, when the otter calmed down enough to sleep through the night.

…

Devman sat on the unyielding ground just outside his tent, his eyes closed and his legs folded. Every night he did this, clearing his mind of all the troubles of the day. Each day he marched with the other generals it seemed to take more and more time to clear away the troubles. Soon enough it would take a full half hour, and a half hour was a lot of time to spend on something that used to take ten minutes at the most. The stoat remembered fondly when the only troubles he had were wars and the possibility that he might die at any second. Things had been much more peaceful then.

Now everything was a trap. If not set by the enemy, then it was set by those that he was supposed to fight alongside. Rekth was a joker, or at least that's what he seemed to be. Something about the smiling fox bothered Devman. He had a feeling that if he could look deep enough into those laughing blue eyes that he would find something dark and dangerous and deeply not funny. But every time he tried, all he found was mocking laughter, and Devman was not used to not being able to understand something. The fox was smart, Devman was well aware of that, but smart enough to pretend to be an idiot as well that convincingly? Or maybe the fox was really just an idiot with good instincts. How was Devman to know for certain?

With a sigh, Devman continued attempting to clear the troubles from his mind. It was much more work than it used to be. Somehow it made him feel old and weak, and he did not like that in the slightest. He had no intention of ever being weak, though age might be inevitable. Devman certainly didn't want to die young. Others might want to die in battle or in some other glorious ending, but Devman didn't want anything like that. Devman was a survivor. All he wanted was to live, and that was all he planed to do.

Aysini was deadly. Devman knew that almost as well as he knew his own name. She was a fanatic who lacked a fanatic's illogical behavior. Oh, she offered up lives to her strange gods and mutilated corpses to "cleanse" them like any other of the thousands of crazed fanatics, but she was the first fanatic Devman had ever met that was still aware of everything going on around her. Even without her blood craze she would still have been a general. With a mind as organized and violent as Aysini's, it would have been a difficult task to escape such a fate. The black furred fox was not as confusing as Rekth, but she was all the more impossible to understand because she seemed so simple.

The other two generals, Kani and Kislin, were much easier to understand. They both desired power, though for different reasons. Kani wanted power because it was there to want, and Kislin wanted power for security. Kislin was an odd beast, searching for safety through violence and destruction. He liked to manipulate everything in secret, and was far too smart for one who seemed so stupid. Devman thought Rekth underestimated Kislin very much, and that was not a good thing to do. Kislin thrived on underestimation.

For a second Devman thought he heard a rustling in his tent. That made no sense though, because none of his beasts would bother to enter his tent, and none of the other armies would dare. Settling back into his half-trance, Devman let his mind slip away from the noises around him. If there weren't so much on his mind, he would never had heard that noise in the first place, whatever it was. His brown eyes closed and he took a deep breath, completely unaware it was the last one he would take.

Suddenly, a noise like two quick footfalls sounded and Devman's eyes snapped open, his mouth open to gasp in shock, but his reactions, quick as thought, were far too slow. Something was tied quickly around his throat and Devman reached for it, struggling with all the muscles of a general who could snap necks and break bones. His paws encountered some kind of wire, and he fought to get a decent grip on it. He was not one to panic, but even he could not stop his heart from speeding up, forcing his lungs to use up all that was left of his air far too quickly.

The wire was slick, though and his paws couldn't find purchase. Still, her fought against it, unable to understand exactly what was happening. Where was his army? Why weren't they there to see what was happening? In a camp as full of creatures as this one, why we he _alone_?

It was only when his vision was already blackened that he thought of turning to see who his murderer was. After all, dying without fighting back was bad enough. Dying without knowing _who _was far worse. He fell forward and rolled weakly onto his back, staring up at a face. Recognition struck and his mouth formed a name. A smile flickered across the face, and Devman's mind flew into darkness.

…

"You can't do that, miss. He's _sleeping_!" Rekth recognized his guard voice through his dreams and, for a moment, struggled to wake. But then deciding that his guard _was_ a guard after all and that he _was_ rather tired, let himself slip back into sleep with a groan. However, when the familiar sound of moving metal ended with a brief but hearty scream, Rekth came fully awake. Pushing himself up, he squinted at the entrance to the tent and grabbed his scythe.

"Put that thing _up_, Rekth. I have not come to kill you." Aysini looked downright deranged as she stalked into the tent with her golden eyes blazing and his bloodstained cloak dyed freshly. "Devman's been killed."

"**_What_**?" Rekth squawked, his eyes widening as his paw tightened on the handle of his weapon.

"He was strangled to death, and Kani's been saying to anyone who will listen and everyone who won't that it was you who did it." Rekth was surprised to see that Aysini seemed more enraged at Kani than at the fact that Devman was dead. "That one would take _weeks_ to cleanse."

"Where are the others?" Rekth demanded as he let his scythe slip out of his paw and grabbed wildly for a pair of pants.

"In Devman's tent." Aysini informed him, her tone furious. "Ruining all chances of ever detecting who killed the stoat."

"Yes, that would be our beloved fellow generals, wouldn't it?" Rekth mumbled darkly as he finished pulling on the pants. For a moment he considered grabbing for a tunic, but, after seeing the murderous look Aysini was directing at him, decided wasting any more time was probably not a good idea. Neither was going into Devman's tent unarmed and accused of murder, but Rekth couldn't do anything about that. Brining a weapon would only cause Kani to go into fits.

…

"There he is!" Kani bellowed as Rekth walked in. "_He_ killed Devman."

"Will you _shut up_?" Kislin screamed back, looking more upset than Rekth thought possible. "Or do I have to _cut your tongue out of your throat_?"

Devman was laid out on the floor of his tent, his face less than attractive now that death had gotten its claws into him. Rekth snorted at the fact that no one had even bothered to close his eyes and reached down to do so, grabbing a blanket from nearby as he did so. He stood up quickly, dropping the blanket over the dead stoat and turned to look at Kani. The rat looked absolutely insane. Black eyes and white bandages blazed against his pelt. At least half the bandages were stained with blood.

"You should be resting, Kani. You're in no condition to be running around and accusing people of murder. Think of your health." Rekth told the rat calmly.

"Even _now_, you joke?" Kislin demanded, looking at Rekth as if he were some kind of monster that mothers threatened children with. "Even _now_ when one of _our rank_ is dead?"

"Breathe, Kislin, before you pass out." Rekth suggested.

"I _saw_ you walking about last night!" Kani shouted, waving a paw at Rekth. "I _saw_ you, so you might as well just confess."

Rekth blinked, surprised. "I wasn't out at all last night…except for when I delivered two unruly hostages to Aysini for execution. And after that I went back to my tent."

"You're a _liar_!" Kani bellowed. "Out of all of us, _you're_ the assassin! It _has to be **you**_! Who else would it be?"

Rekth sighed, not wanting to deal with this right now. "Has it even occurred to you that it might have been the damn **_enemy_**?" He demanded loudly. "Or even a soldier that didn't _like_ Devman?"

"Everyone liked Devman." Kislin muttered. "His troops are almost as loyal as Aysini's."

"Everyone has enemies, Kislin." Rekth corrected. "In an army this big there has to be at least fifty beasts that didn't like him."

"Stop trying to trick us." Kani ordered, drawing a dagger. "_I know you killed him_!"

Aysini's paw darted out and slammed against' Kani's wrist. Instinctively, Kani dropped the dagger and Aysini caught it before it hit the ground. "There is no proof that Rekth killed Devman." She informed Kani coldly. "There is no proof that _you_ didn't. If you can't control yourself, then I will make you leave."

"But he's the _only assassin-_"

"Among the entire army?" Aysini demanded at a hiss. "I believe that you are wrong, rat. Very, _very_ wrong." She stepped away from him, holding the dagger to herself and scowling like she wanted to rip his flesh from his bones right here.

"Why would a common soldier want to kill Devman?" Kislin questioned softly, shaking his head.

"_How _would a common soldier kill a general? They're all weak!" Kani growled, glaring hatefully at Aysini who stared at him impassively.

"All of us were common soldiers once, Kani." Aysini told him coldly. "Except for Rekth, we were all what you just called weak. And _I_ was _never_ weak."

"Any of them could have killed Devman if they snuck up on him when he was in one of those trances of his." Kislin muttered, his tone fierce. "I _told_ him to get guards, but he refused. _Idiot_."

"I know he was alive before sunset." Kani offered up the first piece of useful information. "I saw him forty minutes after our meeting ended yesterday. He was watching the sunset and drinking with his captains."

"I might've been the last one out of us to see him, unless one of you three actually killed him." Kislin was obviously afraid of being accused of murder for speaking up. Rekth wished he could go back to sleep. "I went to borrow the list of siege equipment from him, and to get a drink, but he was already going into his trance. He didn't hear me when I talked to him, so I just left."

"Why'd you want the siege equipment list?" Rekth questioned, confused.

"I didn't, really." Kislin replied with a shrug, "But it gave me an excuse to ask for a drink."

"Oh." Rekth commented understandingly. "I understand."

Aysini snorted. "Did you see anyone out where they did not belong?"

"What?" Kislin asked, apparently confused.

"Like a solider in the wrong section. One of Aysini's soldiers in Kani's army or even in Devman's. Something like that." Rekth clarified.

Kislin blinked, his eyes tightening slightly. "Yes…yes, I saw a solider completely out of place. I thought she was going to Devman for the same reason I had, but she's new, so she wouldn't have known…"

"Who was it, Kislin?" Rekth asked quietly.

"The otter." Kislin announced, brown eyes looking at Rekth accusingly. "Redsplash." Immediately, Aysini and Kani turned to look at Rekth.

_Oh, damn_. Rekth thought to himself.


	10. Chapter Ten

((You have brought to my attention that Redsplash has become almost a background character. Well, after writing this chapter, I think I might've cured the problem. I've also brought in the character whose basic personality ends up in nearly every single story I ever write (I really need to fix that) though I think I've taken out all the originality in him and made him a bit cliché. Shoot me. Pff, I'm really staring to hate all the crazy little subplots that I've got running around. There are way too many for my health. My brain hurts.

Anyway, I'm going away again…another two weeks. Going to go see if I can push anyone into the Grand Canyon. I'll probably be pretty bored for an insane amount of time (driving from Texas to Arizona…oh, joy,) so, when I come back, I might actually be interested in writing on this story again. I hate it when I lose interest in things. Always leads to boredom. I thought I'd post this before I left, and I got started on the next chapter so it wouldn't be so long before the next chapter was finished.))

…

"Otter, get up." Redsplash ignored the voice, curling into a tighter ball, and forcing her eyelids closed again. Nearly before she had finished closing her eyes, she felt herself being lifted and awakened instantly. Two rather brawny creatures, a stoat and a weasel, had her by the arms. Her lips drew back in a snarl and she growled at them, green eyes narrowing to slits.

"Redsplash, I wouldn't-" Root began, his tone warning.

But his warning came a bit too late. She jerked her arms together, surprising both the stoat and the weasel enough for them to stagger forward. She kneed the weasel in the stomach and when he bent forward, his free paw going to his stomach, she elbowed him in the face with the arm he was holding. The weasel dropped her arm, staggering backwards and fumbling for his sword. With her recently freed paw Redsplash punched the stoat in the face. The stoat turned his head away from the blow, and Redsplash's paw collided with his jawbone, which the stoat had intended, but he had not thought the otter would be strong, and had not been prepared for the anger behind her punch. He took a step backwards and slipped, releasing her as he fell backwards.

Redsplash whirled around, taking in her surroundings. Root and Darkclaw stood in the corner of the tent, a ferret and a rat standing in front of them. The vermin were, apparently, supposed to be containing the squirrel and the wildcat, but the expressions on all four of their faces said quite clearly that Root and Darkclaw weren't trying to help, and that the ferret and rat would be dead in seconds if the two were inclined to. The weasel had his sword out and was advancing cautiously. The stoat was standing up slowly, rubbing the side of his face. With his sword out, the weasel blocked her only exit, and, with the way he was moving and the fact that he hadn't chopped her in two when she was dealing with the stoat, Redsplash could tell he didn't want to kill her. Besides, Darkclaw and Root only looked a bit strained, not upset. If this were an execution, they probably would have been showing a bit more emotion. Maybe.

The weasel took advantage of her distraction and swung his sword, slowed by the fact that he was trying to brain her on the side of the head with the flat of the blade and not slice open her skull. Redsplash lunged forward, tackling him. She felt the sword bite awkwardly into the back of her neck and elbowed the weasel in the face again, snatched the sword out of his paws, and lunged to her feet. The stoat moved far faster than she had thought he could and grabbed her wrist, twisting it until Redsplash winced at the pain, rendering the sword useless unless she was willing to break her wrist to stab the stoat. She dropped the blade, as it brought even more stress to her already nearly breaking wrist, and tried to knee the stoat in the stomach. The stoat dodged backwards, released her wrist, and was back by the time she lowered her foot. The otter was bringing her paw up to punch him again in the jaw when she saw the stoat's paw moving. She had enough time to mentally curse her need for sleep before she felt the impact.

She staggered, tripped on Root's damn mountain of pillows, and fell over onto her side. The otter panted for breath as her vision swam. The damn stoat was at least twice as big as she was, and far too muscular for her health. A strange taste was filling her mouth, one she recognized but one that wasn't exactly familiar. Realizing what it was, she spat it out, and blood drenched a lavender pillow. Teeth had been knocked loose by that blow. Teeth she needed to eat with. What a lovely life it was.

The stoat and weasel had grouped with the ferret and were standing between her and the exit. Darkclaw had his paws crossed over his chest and was giving her a look that told her clearly how stupid he thought she was. Root's mouth was hanging completely open and he kept shaking his head back and forth, as if denying the idiocy he saw before him. Redsplash blinked, eyes narrowing as she thought this through. Realizing that the stoat and weasel had just picked her up and that the weasel had not drawn his sword until she'd elbowed him in the face, she came to the conclusion that this _might_ have not been an assassination attempt.

"Wait…" She began, looking around in confusion. "What's going on?"

"_Now_, she asks!" Root bellowed. "**_Now_**! She asks!"

"Of course she asks now." Darkclaw commented. "Now that she's condemned herself, it would be the perfect time to ask."

"I don't know, Darkclaw. You wanna answer her?" Root inquired, shaking his head in frustration.

"No. Do you?" Darkclaw answered darkly.

"At this point I think I'm just going to go stick a sword through my stomach." Root answered.

Redsplash turned away from them, facing the stoat, weasel, and ferret. "What's going on?"

"The generals requested your presence. Something about a murder." The ferret informed her, scowling.

"Murder?" Redsplash asked "I didn't kill anything lately."

"'_Lately_?' Oh, _brilliant_, Redsplash." Root threw up his paws. "Goodbye, everyone. I'm leaving now." And leave he did, walking out as if he could beat the world into submission by stomping his feet hard enough. Darkclaw grumbled for a moment and then followed unhappily, apparently deciding that now was not the time to be associated with Redsplash.

Redsplash considered making a break for it. Whatever was happening, it had Root and Darkclaw acting strangely. But one look at the rat, ferret, stoat, and weasel told her it probably wasn't a good idea. She sighed, and spat the build up of blood at them. Unfortunately, it didn't even get close. "Where're the generals?" She demanded harshly.

…

Rekth lounged unhappily in one of Devman's more comfortable chairs that ringed the circular table and Kani shifted uncomfortably in the one with splinters. Kislin drooped in the chair opposite Rekth, and Aysini sat stiffly in the chair next to Rekth. The foxes were sharing a very long, very communicative look. It was beginning to annoy Kislin. The weasel knew the foxes were talking back and forth, as they did occasionally with their stares, and wanted to know what they were saying. Just the way Aysini's golden eyes kept flashing angrily and Rekth's frown kept deepening caused Kislin to wonder if they were speaking, through their stares, about the murder. Kislin was about to speak up, and get them to stop, when the otter arrived.

The rat and ferret had left, as they had been ordered to if the otter came willingly, but the stoat was holding his jaw as if it hurt, and the weasel's lip was bleeding profusely. Blood dribbled ominously out of the otter's mouth, and a shallow gash at the back of her neck stained her shirt. The bandage around her forearm had been ripped and was now barely holding on, and doing her no good. She looked at it, scowled, and ripped it the rest of the way off, letting it drift down to the ground.

"I'm confused." Rekth admitted dryly, turning away from Aysini to quirk a brow at the three newcomers. "Was there an epic battle?"

"She fought us, sir." The stoat revealed, swallowing nervously.

"Then where's the rat and ferret?" Kani demanded angrily.

"Well, she came willingly…" The weasel added, sounding terrified.

"So she fought you, but she followed peacefully?" Rekth asked, smirking at the confusion they were causing.

"Once she knew what was happenin'." The stoat said with a nod.

"I still have no idea what's happening." Redsplash snapped, spitting blood skillfully onto the ruined bandage.

"You two can leave." Rekth informed the stoat and weasel with a nod. They glanced at Kislin, their army's leader, who nodded, and then left as quickly as they could while still being respectful.

"Otter, what were you doing last night?" Kislin demanded.

Redsplash gave him a long look as if to discover if he was both serious and sane. "Uh, _sleeping_. What were _you_ doing?"

"Kislin saw you in Devman's camp last night." Rekth informed her.

"I went on a walk. I didn't _kill_ anybody." Redsplash retorted defensively.

"She _did_ kill him!" Kani bellowed, pointing an accusing finger at her. "How else would she know it was murder?"

"Don't get too excited, rat." Redsplash suggested with a sneer. "The ferret told me. Who died, anyway?"

"Devman." Rekth answered, and Kislin and Kani glared at him for revealing what they had decided to keep secret.

Redsplash's eyes widened. "_Really_? A _general_?"

"Yes, a general. Did you kill him?" Kislin demanded.

"No." Redsplash shook her head. "I barely even knew who he was."

"I say we execute her." Kani offered suddenly. "Just to be sure."

"I say we don't." Rekth argued, turning to stare with minor annoyance at the rat. "You just want her to die now because you've wanted her to die since you met her. Just because she's not a rat, doesn't mean you can-"

"_Rekth_!" Kislin objected at a yell, unable to believe the fox would dare to insult the rat general in front of a _soldier_.

"And _you-_" Rekth started turning to Kislin.

"**_Quiet_**!" Aysini snapped, and, immediately, her order was followed. "_I_ am in charge of executing. _I_ decide if she dies."

"Not _now_ you don't! One of our own _rank_ is **_dead_**!" Kani shouted.

"And that's exactly the reason not to let our entire system go to pieces!" Kislin hissed back, and then shook his head, sagging back against his chair. "No. She decides."

Rekth watched, scowling slightly, as Aysini stood up. Kani, nearly completely confident that Aysini would take the otter and "cleanse" her to death as Aysini tended to do, sat forward in his chair, his eyes narrowed. Kislin, not liking the tension in the room, chewed on his bottom lip apprehensively. The otter spat more blood on the bandage and then looked up at the fox, making eye contact for the first time.

Aysini paused, golden eyes staring in suspicion and surprise at green ones. The fox drew back, her cloak swirling as if it shuddered. "This one lives." The fox's voice was strong and angry.

"What?" Kani demanded. "_No_!"

"Yes!" Aysini hissed, turning to glare at the rat. "She did not kill the general. _This _one **_lives_**."

"There, you heard her, we're finished here." Rekth practically lunged to his feet. As entertaining as it would be to watch Aysini rip Kani apart, now was not the time, what with the unpleasant experience of telling the armies that one of the generals was dead approaching far too quickly and all. The death of one general would cause alarm. The death of two would cause panic.

"Yes." Kani agreed, surprising them all. "We _are_ finished here." And then he stalked out of the tent. Aysini's paw went to a throwing knife at her belt and she watched Kani's retreating back carefully, but she released it after a while, golden eyes smoldering. The gesture alone was enough to convince Rekth that the fox had seen something in the otter that connected with one of her insane religious rituals. Corrupting or threatening to corrupt one of Aysini's rituals was one of the fastest ways to convince her to end your life.

"Yes, well, this _has_ been lovely, but I'll be going now. I need to tell my army." And Rekth left swiftly.

"Ah, yes, so do I." Kislin muttered and left as hastily as Rekth.

Redsplash glanced at the insane fox with the gold eyes for a second and then fled, attempting to ignore the feeling of disquiet in her gut. Of course, as always, she couldn't convince her guts that there was nothing wrong with them. The beast that normally kept rather quiet was trying to flee out of her by digging its way out through her stomach, and that was never a good sign.

…

Someone had told Redsplash, Darkclaw perhaps, that leaving an army was a nice way to get yourself killed. But Redsplash had seen it in the rat general's eyes. She was going to die anyway. If she stayed with the army she would be killed before she could get her revenge on the badger, and vengeance was all that mattered now. The only thing she had paused long enough to get was the necklace Havoc had given to her the night he died. He had promised that it could get practically anything out of another otter, if she had it. She had promised to tell his family he was dead, but such promises were useless now. Let him die with only her to know. Did his family even care?

The necklace hung around her neck now as she wandered through the light forest. She had hesitated to go into it, after remembering what happened the last time she was in a forest, but decided that it was a small enough forest that she could see anything around her that might have been dangerous. Of course, just because she decided that she could see a threat, didn't mean she could.

"Who are you?" The voice was male and vaguely annoyed. Redsplash whirled around, but all she saw was a tree.

"Who are _you_?" She demanded in response.

An arrow hissed down from the tree and dug deep into the ground an inch from her right foot. "Who are you?" The voice responded, the tone, if anything, more annoyed, though it was hard to tell, as the voice was mostly emotionless.

"Redsplash." She informed him darkly, not liking this situation at all. Was there anywhere she could go where she _wasn't_ being threatened with death? This was just getting ridiculous.

There was some rustling in the tree and, abruptly, an otter jumped down out of it, a bow in his paw and an arrow in his teeth. He landed in a crouch, his free paw helping to steady himself as he stood swiftly. The arrow went to the bowstring immediately, and he drew it back, aiming at her throat. "I've heard some disconcerting stories about you, Redsplash." Again, the voice was nearly completely emotionless.

Redsplash gaped at him. His fur was dyed completely black, with strange blue symbols painted on his face, with a particularly jagged one on the underside of his chin. Glancing at his paws, Redsplash noted he had _more_ symbols, one for the back of each paw. His tunic was black, as were his pants, and the sheaths for his two daggers and the sword he carried on his back, were black, and the pack he carried was, obviously, black. The quiver of arrows was black also, as was the fletching on his arrows.

"Are you _obsessed_ with the color black?" She demanded, her voice rather shrill.

His eyes, nearly as blue as the symbols, narrowed and he drew the string back even further. "Very disconcerting." He remarked.

It took Redsplash a moment to realize he was talking about the stories he must have heard about her. "_You_'ve heard stories about _me_?" She was shocked. She'd had no idea there were stories about her. For some reason it made her feel smug. "What kinds of stories?"

"Disconcerting ones." He clarified, his tone blank while his eyes burned momentarily with what might have been mocking humor.

"Yes, I think I get that part." Redsplash snapped sarcastically. "Now, lower your bow and let me leave or shoot me. I don't have an ample amount of time set aside for lunatics."

"You are a lunatic." The other otter replied.

"Very well, then." Redsplash growled. "I don't have ample amounts of time set aside for _other_ lunatics."

"I'm afraid you'll have to set aside some for me." He remarked.

"Will I? Well…wait! You're an _otter_!" Redsplash reached for Havoc's necklace as the other otter blinked at her, perhaps his version of confusion. When she pulled the necklace off her neck and brandished it at him, though, he blinked twice and leaned backwards a bit, and _that_, Redsplash realized, was as much confusion he showed.

"Where did you get the Stone of Khalidian?" The otter demanded, his tone completely blank as he stared at the black stone with its strange golden symbol.

"It was given to me." Redsplash informed him, somehow smug. "By an otter who died. His name was Havoc."

"Havoak?" The otter asked, his blue eyes staring up at Redsplash.

"No." Redsplash argued with a shake of her head. "Havoc."

"Did he have white fur?" The other otter asked.

Redsplash blinked, uneasy. "Yes…"

"Then it was Havoak." The other otter told her calmly. "How is it that he died?"

For a moment Redsplash considered not telling him. But there was no real reason for it, and he still had an arrow pointed at her throat. "He jumped in front of an arrow."

A blink. "Did he take his own life, then?"

"Yes. In a way. No." Redsplash struggled with how to answer this. "There was an arrow, and it was coming at me, and he jumped in front of it."

The otter's eyes narrowed. "And when he died you took the Stone?"

"No!" Redsplash snapped, actually offended. "I don't rob corpses. The arrow didn't kill him immediately. He gave it to me right before the poison killed him."

"Poison?"

"It was on the arrowhead." Redsplash elaborated.

"So, he did it on purpose, then? He died…for you?" Redsplash found herself slightly insulted, but she couldn't decide why. It wasn't like the other otter sounded surprised or disbelieving. He didn't sound anything.

"Yes." Redsplash answered after a slight hesitation.

"That's the first time the Stone of Khalidian has been a death-gift for over two centuries…" The otter shook his head slightly, blinking. "Havoak must have seen something in you that I do not see to give such a gift to you." He paused. "Did he ask you to give it to anyone?"

"No." Redsplash said slowly. "Why?"

"Because then you would be simply a Transporter and that would make far more sense. Anyone can Transport the Stone to its proper owner, but if he gave it to you…" Suddenly the otter's expression changed, though Redsplash could not have described exactly _how_ it changed. He went about putting the arrow back in its quiver and unstringing his bow as if she weren't there, concentrating so much on the weapon that Redsplash was, for a second, cowed into silence.

"So, what can this necklace thing do?" She asked curiously and a bit quieter than normal.

"The necklace cannot do anything. It is the Stone that holds the power." He answered her distantly.

"What can the _Stone_ do, then?" Redsplash corrected herself impatiently.

"What do you want it to do?" He asked, finishing with his weapon and looking up at her, the blue symbols shimmering oddly in the filtered light of the sun.

"I don't know. I haven't really thought of it. I haven't seen another otter since Havoc died." Redsplash twirled the necklace around her paw, frowning in thought. "If I asked you for your sword…?" She glanced down at the blade.

"I'd give it to you." He answered calmly.

"You'd _choose_ to give it to me?" She questioned.

His eyes narrowed. "If you wish to think of a moral obligation as something you have a choice in."

"It's just a moral thing?" Redsplash was slightly disappointed.

He looked like he would have sighed if he ever dared show that much emotion. "For most, yes. For those that refuse to obey its power there is a tribe of warriors that will enforce its will."

"An entire tribe?" Now, _this_ Redsplash appreciated. It gave her a lot of power, this Stone. She stopped twirling it around her paw and placed the necklace around her neck.

"Of warriors. Havoak was one of them. I am one of them."

"You are? Does your tribe not stay together?" This was a bit perplexing.

"There are several levels of warriors among my tribe. I am training to reach the last level, and must learn from the world for five seasons."

"How does one 'learn from the world?'" Redsplash asked, openly mocking the word choices.

"By traveling across it." He responded, somehow managing to mock her just as harshly as she had mocked him, only not as openly.

Redsplash glared at him. "What's your name?"

"Sade." He responded simply.

Redsplash snorted. "Sounds like sadist."

"Yes." He replied. "Well."

"Are you?" She asked. "A sadist?"

"Occasionally." Was his only response.

"Where's this tribe of yours?" Redsplash asked, wondering if she could use these warriors to kill the badger.

"A season's travel away for me. Perhaps three seasons for you."

"What's that mean?" She demanded angrily.

"What do you want it to mean?"

"Not what it sounds like it means."

"Then it means nothing." He was nothing if not cryptic, this Sade.

"I've had a wonderful time here, but I've got to leave now. I might have a few beasts hunting me by nightfall and would like to be a few miles ahead of them." Redsplash turned to leave.

"Who will be hunting you?" Something about his tone reminded Redsplash that this otter was a warrior who had to obey her wishes as long as she had that stone of whoever.

She turned back to look at him. "Vermin, most likely. I'm leaving their army."

Blink. If he had been surprised by her admission of joining an army of vermin, he hardly showed it. "Do you wish for me to kill them?"

"You would do that?" Redsplash asked, but she already knew the answer.

"If you wished for me to kill them, I would."

Redsplash considered everything that had just been revealed. She had been leaving the army because she had been worried about danger. But with this strange otter who was already agreeing to kill creatures for her, what danger did she really have to worry about? Besides, even if he was the weakest warrior ever to be able to jump out of trees and string a bow, he could distract someone for long enough for Redsplash to run. And now that she paused to remember, that squirrel, Root, could track her down if he wanted too. Running made no sense, but going back with someone who she could order to kill when she felt like it…

"I've changed my mind. I'm going back to the vermin army." She nodded, her grin wide and nearly sadistic. "And you're going with me."

He paused for a heartbeat, something in his eyes telling her that he knew everything that had just gone through her head…the ideas, anyway, if not the specifics. Instead of objecting, though, he simply nodded. "Of course."

…

Redsplash walked back into the tent, mildly surprised the army hadn't marched off without her, to find Root and Darkclaw lounging around in what appeared to be comfortable silence, both resting, apparently, due to their wounds. They didn't even bother to mention the morning's altercation. In fact, Darkclaw just opened his eyes, blinked, and closed them, going back to his nap or whatever it was he was doing. Root, who had been sprawled on his back on his mass of pillows, propped himself up on his elbow.

"Where'd you get this one?" The squirrel asked lazily, yawning and showing every single one of his pale teeth.

"Up a tree." Redsplash snapped. Sade was like her shadow, following her always, though sometimes invisible, and, just like a shadow, completely silent. Sometimes he even refused to answer her unless she demanded him too. Useful he might be, but he was as annoying as everyone else.

"Otters seem to love trees lately." Root remarked with a shrug and fell back against his pillows. "Never seen a black an' blue one before, though."

"Never seen one bruised enough, then." Darkclaw rumbled from the corner.

"Darkclaw Warheart, your sister sends greetings." Sade remarked uninterestedly as he looked around the tent indifferently.

"Does she?" Darkclaw lifted one eyelid. "And when have you met my sister?"

"Not very long ago. Your siblings are engaged in a power struggle. I was a pawn for a while, and then grew bored." Sade walked forward to stare down at the wildcat for a while before turning his back on him, dismissing him, and moving over to look at the squirrel, as if memorizing their faces.

"What're you doin'?" Root mumbled, turning his face away. "Stop lookin' at me."

Sade turned to look at Redsplash, his permanently serious expression firmly in place. "You choose odd companions." He remarked.

"She chose you. Or are you just a visitor?" Darkclaw remarked, standing up. Redsplash noted the old Darkclaw was coming back again. The Darkclaw that had existed before Fatefiend had been killed. The dark one. She wondered who exactly had resurrected him.

"I am here because she wished for me to be here." Sade replied.

"And you just follow other's wishes?" Darkclaw asked, his smirk in his words, if not on his face.

"She carries the Stone of Khalidian." Sade remarked blankly.

Darkclaw turned to Redsplash. "You carry what?"

"Oh, this thing Havoc gave me." Redsplash answered, gesturing at her necklace. "You remember Havoc. The otter slave who jumped in front of the arrow after you put me back in the Nameless One's slave pits."

"Havoak was a slave?" Sade asked quietly.

"You mean the otter you convinced to die for you in less than a day?" Darkclaw replied to Redsplash, ignoring Sade.

"The otter who wouldn't have died at all if you hadn't sold me back to the Nameless One." Redsplash retorted.

"It is the wildcat's fault Havoak is dead?" And immediately Sade had everyone's attention again. He had a very odd way of saying everything without changing his tone. Tension had just arrived in the room, and it had alarmed them all.

Redsplash looked for a very long time at Darkclaw before turning to Sade. "Yes." She told him with a nod. "Yes, it is."

"Would you be bothered you if I killed him?" It was amazing how he could say things like that without even blinking.

"I would!" Root objected loudly. "Someone'll get their skull ripped off and I'm not cleaning up the blood. Blood _stains_ you know. And we're in a _tent_."

"He does have a point. Wildcats tend to be bleeders." Redsplash conceded, attempting not to appear alarmed at the otter's complete willingness to attempt suicide. Darkclaw was, after all, not exactly a weakling.

"It's like their blood's too lazy to clot." Root added, nodding.

"If you continue to speak of me as if I am not here I will be forced to give you some kind of validation of my presence." Darkclaw told them, his tone steely.

"Validate your presence, wildcat, or be dismissed." Sade shot back at him, his tone neither hurried nor bitter, but giving the impression of both.

"I like this otter." Root informed them. "Much more than the other one that's always around us, Darkclaw. I think we should keep him. Can we keep him, Darkclaw?" His words sounded oddly slurred.

Redsplash looked over at the squirrel and frowned, before glancing questioningly at Darkclaw. "What's wrong with him?"

"Since Devman died, the vermin brought out all the beer and wine and had a rather large funeral festival, or something along those lines. Root got involved in some kind of drinking game among a group of ferrets. They brought him back a few hours ago. Apparently, he won." Darkclaw shrugged.

"I'm not drunk, you know." Root informed them all. "Just a little less sober than most."

"Is that festival still going on?" Redsplash asked, glancing over her shoulder.

"The generals, except for Aysini, came down intent on stopping it. Rekth, of course, joined in immediately. Kislin took about half a second of convincing, and Kani couldn't get them to stop. He did take most of the drinks and leave, though. There's enough left to last for the rest of the night, I think." Root explained lazily.

"I'll be back…" Redsplash hesitated at the exit of the tent. "Eventually." She finished awkwardly.

"I wouldn't recommend leaving." Darkclaw informed, his tone shadowy. "Kani's entire army wants you dead. You're safe in Rekth's army's territory, but outside it, they will kill you."

Redsplash glanced at Sade. "Will they?" She asked him.

"No." He replied calmly.

"Yes." Darkclaw amended just as evenly.

"They'll bloody kill you dead." Root agreed at a mutter.

Redsplash looked again at Sade. Oh, well. It was time to see if this black-furred otter was as dangerous as he seemed to be. "I might not stay as long as I planned." She told them and left, feeling, but not seeing, Sade step behind her. The sun was setting quickly, and, already, the long shadows hid him nearly perfectly. No wonder he had dyed himself black.

…

Redsplash had barely made it out of Rekth's camp when seven rats appeared out of nowhere. "Well, damn." She said aloud, blinking. "The one time Root's right, and I don't listen to him."

"Our general wants you dead." One of the rats informed her.

"_Does_ he?" Redsplash inquired, frowning as she looked around. Where was Sade? What kind of guard was he?

"Yes, he says-" A strange hissing sound filled the air, followed by an even odder sound as an arrow appeared from out in the darkness and burrowed into the rat's neck. The rat fell over, emitting the weirdest noises as it trashed its life out on the ground. Two more arrows, and two more dead rats later, the remaining rats found Sade. He had been following Redsplash at a distance, apparently, and when the rats formed a circle around Redsplash they had impolitely left him out. Now he was making his presence a little clearer.

When they closed in on him, he dropped the bow, and drew his sword. He attacked the spear-toting rat first, gutting him as easily as Redsplash could gut a fish. Innards flew everywhere as Sade threw the rat at the others, and Redsplash felt something splatter against her and she cringed away from the warmth of it. A rat charged at the black-furred otter, which struck Redsplash as idiotic, and Sade whirled around quickly. A little too quickly for the rat who ran himself right onto Sade's sword. With what appeared to be a roll of his eyes, Sade kicked the rat off his sword, and lunged at the last remaining rat. Wait…Sade had only killed five. There had been seven rats.

"I'll kill 'er!" Came the announcement from behind as a blade reached Redsplash's neck.

"Oh, hell." Redsplash muttered bitterly.

Sade turned to look at the other rat as the corpse of the sixth rat twitched at his feet. "I doubt you will." Sade replied, kneeling to wipe the blood off his sword, using one of the dead rats' tunics. Redsplash was about to say something, when, with a motion she couldn't quite follow, the otter grabbed one of the two knives at his belt and threw it. She heard, and felt, a sick, cracking impact and turned to see the knife sticking out of the rat's eye. She yelped and shoved him off her, staggering backwards.

"I suggest that we do not go to the revel." Sade remarked far too calmly as he picked up his bow, walked over, yanked the dagger out of the rat's skull, and proceeded to clean it of various liquids.

"Yes. I agree." Redsplash panted, unable to believe what had just happened. She walked around, staring at all seven of the bodies. The otter followed her like the shadow he pretended to be. Almost constantly she watched him now, not sure how to treat him now that she realized how strong he really was. She had expected a warrior, not a monster who could kill seven without even pausing to give a few decent pants. There was something wrong with him, with the way he thought. She could see it in the way his eyes were always blank.

"I would suggest moving back into the territory we were in before." Recommended Sade's calm voice.

Redsplash nodded and walked back into the safety of Rekth's army's territory, feeling very faint. Perhaps she should get more sleep. She really couldn't take any more surprises. Forcing herself to move, she kept walking until she found herself at the very center of Rekth's camp. A campfire had been made here, and it burned still, but none were around. All down at the revel, she supposed. Closing her eyes, she sat down quickly, gripping her head.

"Is there a problem?" Sade asked. She opened one eye to see him crouched within striking distance, though why she was considering killing him, she didn't know.

"Yes. Always." Redsplash winced, a fierce headache starting to brew in the back of her head. "You. How many seasons did you train?"

"I've been training to fight since I was old enough to stand on my own." He told her without blinking.

"I suppose that's a rule of your tribe?"

"The first and third born children are always the fighters. I was the second, but my siblings were killed."

"By who?" If there were a tribe full of warriors like him, she really didn't want to imagine someone insane enough to attack them.

"The tribe leader. It was a ritual sacrifice to the Justice Goddess."

"You have _ritual sacrifices_?" Redsplash demanded shrilly.

"Quite often." He nodded. "Mostly to the Justice Goddess. She is, by far, the most demanding."

Redsplash sighed and let go of her head, staring at the otter's bloodstained paws. "What do those symbols mean?" She gestured at the blue symbols on his face and paws.

He reached up, touching a vivid mark on his right cheek. "Dedication to the God of Lightning and Battle." His paw moved to another symbol on his left cheek, this one softer. "Sign of eternal mourning-"

"Eternal mourning?" She questioned.

"For the death of the Justice God and for the death of my siblings." He told her blankly.

"You have sacrifices for a dead god?" She demanded, shocked.

"No. We have sacrifices for the Justice Goddess, not to the Dead God." He corrected her.

"Oh. Yes. That would make sense." Redsplash clutched her head again.

"Are you healthy?" Came Sade's voice, not sounding the least bit concerned.

"Oh, fine. Perfect. Only, I think my head's about to explode." Redsplash remarked, her sarcasm as biting as the wolf running rampant in her head.

"Why?"

Redsplash glared at him. "Why do you _think_? Because I'm in an army full of _rats_ who want to _kill me_! I've got a _wildcat_ for a _roommate_, a _drunken squirrel_ with all the _pillows_, a _shadow_ who _talks_, only not much, and _Fate's_ not here to _help me_!"

"Fate doesn't often help anyone." Came the bland reply.

"Not fate the _force_, you fool. Fate the _ferret_!"

"Ferret?" Sade inquired calmly.

That was it. That marked the second Redsplash lost it. Exactly. How could someone like Sade, an unfeeling bastard, ask about Fatefiend? How could she have come this far away from who she was born to be? How could a psychotic mouse talk to her in her dreams? How could _any of this be **happening**_?

She punched Sade as hard as she could, directly in the face. After all, she had punched two creatures in the face this morning already, why not continue? Of course, the fact that Sade's head only turned slightly to the left didn't help her fury. In fact, she went, if anything, more insane.

It was only after she had locked her paws around Sade's neck and was preparing to kill him that she realized he wasn't fighting back. And nothing will take away bloodlust like the lack of fight. Her paws went limp and she pulled then back to herself, scurrying away. Sade coughed for perhaps thirty seconds and then turned to look back at her, his face perfectly calm.

"Don't you feel _anything_?" She demanded at a shriek.

"I feel everything. I suggest you breathe, Redsplash. Your eyes are red."

Redsplash reached up to touch her eyelids, and took Sade's advice. She breathed. After a very long time, longer than Redsplash cared to think about, the headache lessened to the point that she could think straight. And it took nearly as long for her mind to finish ranting at her.

"You were going to let me kill you, weren't you?" Redsplash demanded, turning to glare at Sade.

"Yes." Sade agreed calmly, blinking.

"_Why_?"

"Because you have the Stone of Khalidian." He answered.

"What's so important about this damn stone?" Redsplash demanded, scowling down at the black stone.

"It is final gift of the Justice God to the mortals before he was vanquished."

"Oh. Of course." Redsplash remembered to breathe, though every breath was a hiss or growl now.

"Your eyes are green again." Sade informed her.

"Good. Great. Lovely." Redsplash snapped.

"Indeed." He retorted. Redsplash glanced up at him to find a faint smile disappearing quickly.

"You _do_ feel, _don't_ you?" She demanded suspiciously.

"Everything." He responded, his tone perfectly blank yet again.

"And you were just going to let me kill you." Redsplash mumbled staring at him. What was _wrong_ with him?

"Indeed." He repeated, though without the smile Redsplash was beginning to think was an illusion.

"Yes? Well, then, with whatever power this little stone possess I'm ordering you to never let me kill you." Redsplash snapped, gesturing at the stone to emphasize her point.

There was a long silence, full of unease. "If you order it, then I cannot disobey." He seemed vaguely confused. Perhaps this was breaking some sort of rule of his tribe. Good.

Redsplash glanced down at his paws as he brought out the knife he had stabbed into the eye of a rat to clean it yet again. Another blue symbol shimmered. "What does it mean?" She demanded, pointing at his paw.

He held up both paws to show her. "The one on the my right paw means tranquility, the one on the left is conflict." He went back to cleaning his knife.

"So, peace is right?" She inquired.

"To look upon from my eyes, yes. If I look upon it from another's, it is often backwards." Again with the cryptic responses.

"Is the rest of your tribe like you?" She asked.

"No. I am often punished for being so emotional and talkative."

"For _what_?" Redsplash demanded.

"Being emotional and talkative. Emotions can cause hesitation and talking can disturb one's thoughts."

"They _punish_ you?"

"Often." He answered calmly.

"Well, that explains a lot." Redsplash remarked dryly. "We'd better go back to the tent. This place is too open."

"Nothing could harm you." He answered as he held the clean and shimmering knife up to the moonlight. "I am enough of a warrior of my tribe to be able to assure you of that."

Redsplash stared at him. "You remind me of Havoc, a little. Except Havoc had emotions and Havoc talked."

"Havoak had the Stone. He was not raised as a warrior, though he decided to become one before he left." Sade remarked.

Redsplash did not respond, knowing the otter probably didn't care, and started walking towards the tent. She felt him behind her, but she never saw him. In the darkness, she could hardly see anything. And everything seemed to be dark in these days.

…

When she reached the tent she found Root and Darkclaw exactly where she had left them, the only difference being that Root had rearranged the pillows a bit. The squirrel glanced up when she walked in. "Back so soon?" He asked. "Found the revels a little too wild, did you?"

"Don't talk." Redsplash ordered and collapsed into the mountain of pillows.

Root twisted to look at her. "You can't order me not to talk." He informed her. "I can talk until I die, and there's nothing you can do about it. Funny how that works, isn't it?"

"Sade," Redsplash called out. "Make him stop talking." The otter glanced at the squirrel and drew his knife.

"Don't do that." Darkclaw rumbled forebodingly.

"Stop me." Sade responded, again managing to portray contempt without changing his blank tone. He drew closer to the squirrel, who gaped up at him in disbelief and confusion.

Darkclaw snarled and stood up, his claws fully out. The otter turned to him, his grip changing on his knife. There was none of the usual threats that accompanied the moment before a fight. They simply watched each other, studying every movement, every breath. Again Sade's grip changed on the knife, so that he could throw it with the same ease that he threw the same knife before, and kill Darkclaw, presumably, as easily as he killed the rat.

"All right, you two," Root snapped, sitting up. "Play nicely."

Redsplash shook her head. "Sade, stop it." She ordered. Sade glanced at her, put away his knife, and stood as if awaiting other orders. Darkclaw snorted and his claws retracted.

"Good." Root snapped and settled back into the pillows.

"He wasn't obeying _you_, Root." Redsplash told him.

"You're mighty protective of your power there, Redsplash." Root commented, mocking. "Afraid you're going to lose it like you lost your ferret friend?"

"Sade, kill him." Redsplash snapped, talking before she thought, as usual.

However, Root was much more the quick thinker, and he snatched her necklace off her neck. "Oh, look, _I_ got the magic pebble now." He remarked, darkly cheerful. Redsplash snatched for it, but Root held it away from her.

Sade grabbed it out of Root's paws and threw it back at Redsplash, who caught it easily. "Do you still wish for me to kill the squirrel?" Sade inquired, completely polite.

Redsplash considered it for a second, watching Root's green eyes dart from her to Sade uneasily. "Yes, but it wouldn't be a good idea. Leave him alone."

"If that is your wish…" Sade remarked and drew away, moving to stand by the entrance.

"I'm going to sleep now." Root informed them all in a tone of great annoyance. "And if any of you decide to kill me, do it while I'm asleep. I don't have the energy for you lunatics anymore." He closed his eyes tightly and scowled, even after he had burrowed deep into the pillows.

Redsplash rolled her eyes and stole several pillows, making herself comfortable in the corner opposite Darkclaw, who watched her with his cold eyes blazing. She had done something to anger him. Maybe he would kill her. At this point, Redsplash couldn't have cared much even if he was waving a sword and screaming for her death. She was asleep almost immediately, leaving Sade and Darkclaw awake.

…

Redsplash recognized this dream even before it had begun. She was in the place she always was when she spoke with the mouse. A deep hatred for this place was beginning to form in her mind. The mouse was emerging out of the loathed landscape, and he looked livid. He carried the sword, instead of having it sheathed, and looked about ready to use it.

"Redsplash," He began in a voice both ominous and furious. "We need to talk."


	11. Chapter Eleven

((Ahh…and, once again, I currpost Martin's personality to better fit with my story. Oh, well, people (and mice) change. And who knows how long he's been dead by now. Maybe he's just going through some kind of crisis.

Anyway. Much turmoil in this chapter. A bit of the generals fighting, a bit of Sade and Darkclaw, a load of Redsplash and Martin, a bit of Root and Martin, a fair amount of Redsplash and Root…and a bit of Sade and Redsplash, if you can call that a confrontation. Personally, I wouldn't. Oh, and Aysini and Sade.))

"_Look, Redsplash, you can't go around corrupting the heroes. I won't allow it." The mouse scowled across at he, his arms crossed over his chest._

"_I'm not corrupting anyone." Redsplash snapped back, her tone sullen._

"_Have you any idea what you're doing to Sadian?" The mouse demanded, not even acknowledging she had spoke.  
"I don't even know who that is." Redsplash retorted_

"_Sadian is the real name of that otter you've got working for you like slave." The mouse informed her coldly, scowling now._

"_It's not slavery if they go along with it **willingly**." Redsplash growled._

"_He doesn't have any other choice! For him, his only purpose is to obey the will of the one who the Stone belongs to. That's all he was born for, and that's all he lives for."_

"_His fault, **not** mine." Redsplash snapped._

"_His fault? His **fault**?" The mouse looked about a breath away from going into hysterics. Instead of going hysterical he groaned, shaking his head in some kind of negative emotion. "You're going to kill them all, Brighteye. You're going to kill them all."_

"_Don't call me that." Redsplash snapped. "That's not my name anymore."_

"_You're insane." The mouse informed her, his paw dropping limply. "I **told** them your mind couldn't handle the bloodwrath. But did they listen? Do they **ever**? **No**, of course not! Not to me!"_

"_You told who?" Redsplash asked, scowling._

"_**That** you won't find out until you're dead." The mouse growled. "Which, for the sake of the world, had better be soon."_

"_It won't be." Redsplash retorted. "Especially with that crazed otter. All I have to do is ask him to keep me safe."_

"_He's the one most likely to kill you at this point." The mouse snapped back. "Did you think you could keep him like a caged bird? It would be like putting a collar on a cougar and calling it your pet."_

"_Cougar?" Redsplash questioned._

_He ranted onward without bothering to explain. "He's got a strict code of what he can and cannot do. He's the only one of that tribe who's dark enough to want to break that code, but he **can't**. He thinks his gods would torture him for eternity if he did."_

"_Code?"_

"_You wouldn't understand it." The mouse said, almost venomously. "You don't believe in anything."_

"_I don't have to." Redsplash retorted._

"_Of course **you** would say that." The mouse scowled. "**You** know absolutely nothing about everything."_

"_You're annoying, for an hallucination." She informed him._

"_Hallucination?" He repeated, as if this were the worst insult ever spoken aloud. "**Hallucination**?"_

"_Right. Hallucination. It's what you are, isn't it?" Redsplash demanded, scowling._

"_**No**!" The mouse bellowed._

"_Then what **are** you?" She demanded._

"_I'm…" The mouse started heatedly and then trailed off. "It doesn't matter. What **matters** is the that you're corrupting heroes."_

"_Hero**es**?" Redsplash demanded, blinking._

"_Yes. Two of them. **And** a potential hero."_

"_Well, I'm **not** doing it **on purpose**!" She screamed at him._

_He stared at her. "You expect me to believe you'd feel guilt for ruining other's lives?"_

"_I don't **care** what you believe! I don't believe **anything**, remember?" She retorted._

"_You don't understand what kind of situation you are in, do you?" The mouse demanded._

"_Of **course** not! I'm **insane**! I'm talking to a mouse **hallucination** who is telling me he's real!"_

"_I'm a real mouse." The mouse replied, sounding offended._

"_Oh? Real mice have **names**, you know. And…and better things to do than to sit around bothering me every time I fall asleep!'_

"_I have a name." The mouse sounded very much offended by this point, and also very defensive. "It's a well **known** name, too."_

"_Oh, **is** it?" Redsplash demanded, rolling her eyes. "Well, sorry, I haven't heard about any mice lately. Weak species and all, you know how that is."_

_For a second, Redsplash thought the mouse would attempt to cleave her in two with that magnificent sword of his. His eyes were about as wide as they could ever get, and his breathing was a bit strained. Redsplash watched him, eyes narrowed and smile wicked._

"_You," The mouse said finally, his voice harsh as he pointed accusingly at her with his right paw. "Are suicidal."_

"_Just want to know if that saying that if you die in your dreams you die in reality is true or not." Redsplash replied, grinning, as she stared over at him._

"_Well, it's not. Not in this type of dream." The mouse snapped._

"_Then I've got nothing to lose." She told him, still grinning._

"_Do you **want** me to kill you?" The mouse inquired, his expression unreadable._

"_Always wanted to try dying." Redsplash answered. "Everyone's doing it."_

_The mouse stared at her for a very long time. "You know, if you do die you will never see Fatefiend again."_

"_What?" Redsplash demanded, frowning._

"_You and Fatefiend…you're different. He triumphed where you failed. You can't…it won't…" The mouse trailed off, looking both confused and mildly upset and somehow guiltily smug at the expression on Redsplash's face._

_Redsplash quickly forced her expression into one of complete boredom. "I don't remember ever losing a fight that Fatefiend won." She remarked coldly._

"_See? That. There's where you're different." The mouse shook his head. "I never mentioned anything about a fight, Redsplash. There are some things that aren't about violence."_

"_Not in this world." Redsplash spat, glaring._

_The mouse stared at her. "Do you think there are limits on the world, Redsplash?"_

"_Everything has limits."_

"_Everything has possibilities." He responded quietly._

"_Except there is no possibility of me ever seeing Fatefiend again, right?" Redsplash demanded._

_The mouse hesitated for a very long time. "If you gave up all hope for revenge and spent the rest of your life trying to save the world from itself, then you might be able to see him long enough to say goodbye."_

"_Goodbyes are useless." Redsplash growled. She was growing angry at this hallucination._

"_You think everything's useless."_

"_Is there anything that isn't?" Redsplash hissed, her paws fists now._

_He tilted his head to the side. "In your opinion, I doubt it."_

"_Do you know my opinion?"_

"_Everyone knows your opinion, Redsplash. It's the same opinion of every rat, weasel, or fox on the planet. Minus the decent ones, of course."_

"_I'm not a rat." Everything tilted oddly and was beginning to take on a red tinge._

"_Of course not. You're an otter."_

"_Aren't you supposed to tell me I have the potential to be good? Aren't you supposed to try to brainwash me into fighting all the naughty vermin and their disgusting personality traits?" Redsplash demanded, her voice oddly shrill as everything turned a darker red._

"_I think if you want the potential to be good you're going to have to steal your soul back from that idiot ferret that goes around without telling his name to anyone." The mouse replied, his tone almost bitter._

"_The Nameless One doesn't have a name to go around not telling." Redsplash replied, ignoring the stolen soul comment._

"_Oh, everyone has a name, Redsplash. You have two. I have many. That one just doesn't know or doesn't like his. I have no interest in his wishes or his wisdom."_

_Redsplash didn't reply at all, but stared across at him. It was hard to concentrate, with everything red and screaming._

"_I have others I need to speak to tonight, Redsplash. Time is different for me, but it still exists."_

"_I'm not holding you here." Redsplash growled._

_The mouse shook his head. "I'll have to speak to you again later. Stop corrupting the heroes, Redsplash. Especially Sadian. The last thing this world needs is one of **his** tribe running amok."_

"_Maybe it's the only thing the world needs." Redsplash argued, glaring._

_Again the mouse hesitated, as if considering. Finally, looking mildly confused and very much surprised, he nodded. "Indeed." He murmured and disappeared._

…

"_Squirrel…" The voice came from a distance. Root looked up, searching._

"_Who is it?" He asked quietly._

_In answer to his question, a mouse appeared out of nowhere. Root stared in surprised, momentarily awed into silence. "Squirrel…why have you let the otter lead you here?" The mouse demanded, and Root's eyes were drawn to the sword at the mouse's back._

"_Well…umm…" Root struggled for an answer. "I thought it would be worse if she were on her own."_

"_And if I told you that by staying you were endangering yourself?" The mouse inquired._

"_I already knew that much." Root answered quietly. "Didn't seem like such a bad idea at the time."_

"_What time?" _

"_After Fatefiend died. It's not like I have a home to go back to, and I think if I left the wildcat would kill me."_

"_You underestimate yourself. If you wanted, you could escape the wildcat. He is not as interested in you now as he was before you knew yourself."_

"_Before I knew myself?" This was utterly confusing. Root tried to concentrate. "I've always known myself."_

"_You know that's not the truth. You still don't remember, do you?" The mouse looked almost apologetic. "What you did before you forgot yourself?"_

_Root had the vaguest sensation like something in the back of his mind cringing. He ignored it as best he could. "I remember a bit. Not much." Perhaps it was the feeling of peace the mouse seemed to embody, or maybe it was just the fact that this was a dream, but the squirrel found himself not bothering to keep secrets. What was the point, anyway? What could this mouse do to him?_

"_Good." The mouse nodded. "Don't go searching for your past, squirrel. There is a reason you forgot it in the first place."_

"_I chose to forget?" Root asked, frowning._

"_Yes."_

"_But…but why?" Root couldn't imagine anything worse than not knowing. Why would he choose to forget?_

"_For a very good reason. Perhaps the best of reasons. You must **stop** searching for your past."_

"_But I want to know." Root paused and then continued. "I **have** to know." _

"_No. Perhaps some of the skills you used to know would be useless to remember now, but what you did, you do not want to remember."_

"_What? Did I kill someone? Is that it? Did I…murder someone?" Root didn't care to remember that he had already killed two creatures. He forced those thoughts away. He'd been forced into it. He had to believe that. Otherwise…_

"_Believe me when I tell you that you do not wish to know. You have enough troubles right now without those of your past."_

"_Troubles? Oh. Yes. The vermin horde."_

"_And your traveling companions." The mouse added._

"_Oh, am I dead?" Root asked. "Did that black otter kill me? Is that why I'm talking to you?" Somehow the concept of death didn't seem so disconcerting…it seemed almost…peaceful._

"_No, you are not dead. Though Redsplash's slave will kill you if she asks him too."_

"_Slave? I thought he was just like a guard or something. Didn't know he was a slave…" Root trailed off, remembering his own slavery. "I think I'll have to talk with Redsplash about that."_

"_He made himself a slave. If you fight it, he'll only kill you."_

"_But I thought he couldn't, without Redsplash's order." Root objected._

"_He can kill you if you break his Code. Although…" The mouse tilted his head, considering. "He's already agreed to break one of the rules of the Code. Partially, anyway. So he might let you live. I don't know what all he might do."_

"_He's a strange one. Already plannin' on killing Darkclaw." Root shrugged. "I should probably be referring those two, but I'm a bit tired of death threats from both of 'em. Let 'em kill each other."_

_This seemed to alarm the mouse. "You don't mean that." He stated, though it sounded more like a question._

_Root sighed. "Suppose I don't." He agreed. "But it would be nice if they just disappeared."_

"_And Redsplash? Do you want her to disappear too?"_

"_I dunno. She got me into this problem in the first place, but she did free me from the foxes…I owe her something, but I'm not sure what."_

"_Ah, so you're as much her slave as the otter is." The mouse murmured, frowning._

"_I am not." Root objected. "I can choose what I do. I'm not anyone's slave anymore."_

"_You're not?" The mouse asked. "Then why did you kill for her?"_

"_I didn't kill for her." Root snapped, remembering the hare and the rat he had killed. "I killed for myself."_

"_But why were you in those situations?" The mouse demanded. "You killed the rat because you freed the others. You wanted to run. Knew you should have. But you freed them because you owed them, and you killed because they needed you to."_

_Root decided to give up on that one. The mouse seemed pretty determined he was right. "But the hare I killed for myself." What a strange situation, when he was actively seeking to prove himself guilty. _

"_Because the otter had lead you to an army. Because if you didn't, the otter would have been executed."_

"_Because if I hadn't, **I'd** have been executed." Root argued._

"_Be honest, squirrel. If not with me, at least with yourself. By the time you got to the army, you stopped caring about your own survival."_

_Root stared at him, "That's not true." He objected._

"_Isn't it?" The mouse replied._

_Root shook his head, because he wanted to deny it. "It's not."_

_The mouse sighed. 'Think about it, then. I have others to talk to. And remember Root…don't go looking for your past, because there is a possibility that you might find it."_

…

Sade and Darkclaw's conversation ended as Redsplash came awake with a growl. Not ever bothering to speak, she stalked out of the tent. Sade stood up quickly, frowning after her. Darkclaw's brilliant green eyes rolled.

Perhaps ten seconds passed and then Redsplash came stalking back in, remembering, apparently, that there was an entire army out for her blood. "You." She growled, pointing at Sade. "Come with me."

"Lover's calling." Darkclaw mocked.

Sade turned back to him and drew a knife. Redsplash grabbed him by the neck and tugged him after her. "Leave the wildcat alone! He's stupid and ugly!" She ranted.

"Well." Darkclaw muttered to himself. "I think 'ugly' was a bit much."

…

Redsplash threw herself down onto the ground far enough out of the army encampment that no one would be around to threaten her life. Not in force, anyway. Sade settled down easily a few feet away, his gaze constantly moving. He still had that pack with him. The one that never seemed to leave his back.

"Could you make a fire?" She demanded, her tone harsh. Really, she would have preferred to be alone, but being killed by rats probably wouldn't help her mood at this point.

Sade left silently and Redsplash wondered where he thought he was wandering off to. It became apparent a few minutes later, though, when he came wandering back, wood clutched in his paws. He dropped it on the ground, crouched beside it, pulled something out of his pack, and went about creating fire with the efficiency he did everything else. It was getting highly annoying by this point. Could the otter do everything? She decided not to care and sunk deeply into her own personal thoughts.

"We shouldn't be out here." He said suddenly.

She looked at him, frowning. "Why not?"

"Rats are coming this way." His answer was quiet and calm as he went about stringing his bow.

"What?" Redsplash had a probably keeping her tone as calm as he kept his. He gestured over his shoulder and she squinted. In the darkness, something was moving. She decided to take his word that it was rats. He grabbed a flask out of his pack and drenched the fire in water. Apparently not caring, at this point, about the smoke. Eventually it became clear that the moving darkness was rats. Seventeen, if Sade could be trusted to count accurately.

"Is this a problem?" Redsplash asked, frowning at him.

"Seventeen rats. Two of us. No. It's not a problem. As long as…do you have a weapon?" He glanced at her, for a second looking doubtful.

"No." Redsplash admitted uneasily.

"This is a problem." He told her and looked back at the rats.

"Figured that much." Redsplash muttered. "What do we do?"

She saw him squint and he slithered forward on the ground a bit. "They have bows and spears. You couldn't run from them. Not without some kind of distraction."

"Could you cause a distraction?"

"I always cause a distraction." He retorted and Redsplash stared at him, wondering if he was joking or not. "But I'd have to leave you here and try to get around behind them. Though they might retreat and catch you. So, to the side. Away from camp so they might go back there." He nodded and moved to straighten a bit.

"You are _not_ leaving me here!" She growled, grabbing the back of his tunic and dragging him back down. "I don't have a _weapon_."

He looked at her. "Do you know how to use a sword?"

"I learned as a child, but I haven't had one in seasons."

"Bow?"

"Same as the sword." Redsplash growled. "Look, do you have a knife?"

"Yes, but if you get close enough to them to use it, you'll be dead."

"I can throw knives."

"There are seventeen of them. Tell me, do you think the knife will just return to your paw after you throw it?" Apparently he was getting annoyed, though she couldn't tell for sure.

"If _you_ do your job right I won't _have_ to use it!" She retorted.

"I've failed before. Depending on me wouldn't be the best idea." After revealing this piece of information, he sat up again, scanning the darkness. "They're getting too close. I'm going. Take this and run when you feel it's necessary." He handed her a knife, giving way to her request, and managed to disappear into the darkness before Redsplash looked back up from the dagger.

"This life isn't worth it." She mumbled and tightened her grip on the knife, staring out into the dark. Her night vision wasn't near as good Sade's. The few things she could see, like the rats, were just vague lumps.

Minutes passed. Very long, tedious, anxious minutes. And then, suddenly, a full force of beasts burst out of the darkness and lunged at the rats. Redsplash, jumping to the conclusion that this was the actual _enemy_ and quickly deciding not to come to the aide of her fellow soldiers that wanted her dead, she lunged to her feet and began sprinting back to the camp. It did not occur to her to care what had happened to Sade.

…

Sade had never been taken captive before in his life. So it only made sense that one of the few times he thought nothing else could really go wrong in one day, it would happen. He should have taken the proper precautions of course, but he had been in a hurry. The trap he had stepped should not have been a surprise. Seasons of training to pick out discrepancies in the landscape at dark would have let him see the figures crouching in the darkness, if he'd thought to use them. And now, here he was, wondering what was happening to otter known as Redsplash.

It was while he was kneeling weaponless on the ground with his paws tied behind his back and a blindfold around his eyes that he really began to realize how much he hated blindfolds. He could fight without his front paws because his legs were far more powerful then his arms were, anyway, and he knew that his sense of hearing was just as useless to him as his sense of sight, and that he had trained for a situation just like this, but he could fully silence the unease inside him. Which was very, very bad because the last time he hadn't been able to quiet unease it had grown to panic and panic lead to anger. And once he was angry, he tended to forget certain morals requirements of his tribe.

"Wake up the rat general and bring him to my tent." Came a feminine voice, full of anger and contempt.

"Yes, Aysini." Another voice, male, full of reverence. "We found an otter…but not the one you spoke of. This one's different."

"Where is it?" The voice demanded. Sade supposed this was Aysini.

"It is over there. We tied it up. There were guards for it, but it attacked them."

"Before or after you tied it up?" Aysini again.

"Both." Came the voice. Sade smirked inwardly. Ah, yes, at least his training hadn't failed him _then_.

"Serious injuries?" Oh, this Aysini sounded very much angry now. Somehow that made Sade feel very smug. Very smug indeed.

"A few. We believe two of us have broken ribs, though they could be bruised. Several have minor to serious bruising, and one of us will require stitching on his left forearm." Strange, that they referred to each other with the 'us.' It was almost as if they thought each other one.

"Stitching? Did it have the opportunity to use his weapons?"

"No. It bit one of us."

"And this bite requires stitching?"

"It's teeth went nearly to the bone." Sade could feel the smile twitching at his lips and any of his tribe could have sensed his great mirth, but few outsiders would even notice. He felt no remorse. They'd been trying to gag him at the time, but decided against it eventually.

"Clean the cut carefully. Beware the diseases the uncleansed carry." Now, that was almost insult. The smile disappeared and Sade turned his face in the direction of the voice.

"Yes, Aysini." Again that reverence in the tone became almost unbearable. Was this some kind of priestess of theirs? "And what do we do with the prisoner?"

"I need to speak with the foul rat general before I deal with the prisoner. Chain him somewhere in the camp. He should survive for the few minutes I'll need."

"No guards for it's safety then?"

"It attacked one of us. The children need their vengeance." There was a smugness in the voice that made Sade's mind burn with agitation. He could feel the danger in the air and he welcomed it. After all, now that he'd broken one of the few rules of his tribe he hadn't already shattered into a million pieces and allowed himself to be captured, there was very little honor left for him to protect.

…

Sade felt them surrounding him. For a while they had left him alone. Perhaps thinking he was under some kind of protection, but now they were closing in like darkness after twilight. They'd chained his wrists to something particularly sturdy, and they had chained them in front of him. This was the first mistake they'd made. Did they not understand yet that he was dangerous? Why would they give him the freedom to use his fists if they did not expect him to use them?

The chain was five paces long and he could move around the post, or whatever it was he was chained to, in a complete circle without tripping over anything or being stopped. Stupid of them. Suicidal nearly. Or perhaps he was getting overconfident. After all, he could be surrounded by raging wolves or wildcats. He could be the suicidal one.

They were closing in even more, and he could hear them all around. He could practically feel them around him, and he hated how it felt. Calculating calmly, he whipped his head around frantically and stumbled back, limping on his left leg, deciding to appear panicked and weak. Sade continued limping backwards until he felt his back against the post. Good. No one liked to fight with their back exposed. After all, one swipe to his back and there was little he could do. There were a lot of muscles on his back, and if there were severed…

And then one of them got too close. He lunged at him, swinging with his paws, using the added weight of the chains that kept them linked together, to put more weight into the swipe. Whatever he hit cracked and growled, and he felt it moving backwards. Something jumped at him and he dodged backwards, this time kicking at it. It drew back. Sade heard the hissing of moving air and swung with his paws again, feeling them jolt as they collided with something midair. Again, he drew aside, straining his senses to feel what was going on.

Every time something attacked, he dodged backwards. It only occurred to him that this was a flawed plan when he jumped backwards the final time, and found he had completely wrapped himself around the post. He lunged forward, but felt something sharp dig into his skin. Immediately, blood began seeping out of the wound on his chest. And now he knew why the entire army hadn't mobbed him. Because they had herded him like a sheep until he was practically defenseless. Well. Now that he had been tricked he felt properly angered. He snarled at them and lunged forward as best her could, digging his teeth into the nearest attack. Judging from the gurgled scream, he figured he had hold of the neck and dug his teeth in deeper, ripping backwards.

…

"What is this Aysini?" Kani demanded, looking furious as he stalked into Aysini's tent.

"It is not your place in this army to execute beasts, Kani." Aysini told him coldly, holding her favorite axe carefully in one paw. "It is mine."

"You woke me up to tell me this?" He demanded.

"I woke you up to tell you that the seventeen assassins you sent out after the otter will be executed at dawn for traitorous acts." Aysini told him, her amber eyes glowing. "I thought you might want to be present."

Kani's eyes widened and for a second he almost walked into the trap. And then he recovered, and had the intelligence to appear surprised. "Assassins? What assassins?"

Aysini snorted. "Your lies do not fool me, Kani."

"I didn't send out any assassins." Kani argued.

"No, because it would be stupid, wouldn't it? To use assassins so short after Devman was killed by one. It would be suicide, wouldn't it?" Aysini mocked him coldly.

Kani's eyes flamed with anger, but he didn't say anything. "I sent out no assassins, Aysini, but if you found assassins, by all means, execute them. They certainly weren't under my orders and any beast of mine that acts without orders needs to be killed."

Aysini's eyes flashed. "You would take seasons to cleanse." She informed him coldly. "No loyalty even to your own."

"They aren't mine." Kani retorted. "And how are those '_children_' of yours doing lately, anyway? Healthy and alive, I hope."

Aysini caught onto the veiled threat immediately. "Watch who you threaten, rat. Rekth wouldn't mind your death and Kislin is easily persuaded. Of the remaining generals _you_ are in the most perilous position."

"Is that a confession?" Kani demanded.

"To Devman's murder? No. I didn't kill Devman. There was no point in his murder. No cleansing. Perhaps by cleansing those seventeen assassins Devman's soiled death will be forgiven."

Kani's jaw tightened at the mention of the death of his rats. "Wake me up for their execution. As it is, I need sleep. These are troubling times, with maniacs in power."

Aysini's grin was neither pleasant nor friendly. "Maniacs in power indeed, rat." She remarked quietly as he turned his back on her and left.

She tightened her grip on her axe, glanced once again at the impressive amount of weaponry her army had taken from the otter that was laid out carefully on her table, and stood up. Perhaps by now the otter would be intimidated to the point of blubbering, Kani had, after all, kept her waiting a bit longer than she had expected, but if he was as strong as he was supposed to be there might be a bit of intelligence left in him. Aysini hoped it was so. After all, interrogating the terrified was rarely productive and never entertaining.

…

She was surprised when she arrived on the scene to find the otter, bleeding from several cuts, digging his teeth into the wrist of one of her ferrets. The ferret roared and yanked at his wrist, pulling viciously. The otter let go, but not after tearing a bit of flesh from the ferret's arm. He spat it onto the ground and tilted his head. Before the rat that had been charging at him reached him, the otter lashed out with his feet, bowling him over. But that unbalanced him, and several of Aysini's beasts charged in, ripping at him with daggers.

Aysini watched, intrigued, as the otter, his front paws useless as there was only enough slack on the chain for him to move them half an inch or so, lashed out again and again with his back paws until the group of vermin drew back, annoyed. Of course, Aysini's beasts weren't allowed to kill him. Not without her ordering it. If she let them, this otter would be dead in the time it took another drop of blood to splatter on the sand. But the spears and swords had been abandoned for daggers and knives, and that was the only reason the otter was managing to keep his skin on. That and the fact he seemed immune to pain. Perhaps this interrogation would be entertaining after all.

"Children!" Aysini called out, and, immediately, the twenty or so beasts from her army that had been extracting their revenge on this otter drew to her, abandoning the otter. "Who has the key to his chains?"

"I do." Announced one of her captains, holding up a key.

"Good, then release him. His paws _are_ still tied together, aren't they?" Aysini inquired.

"Of course." The captain replied. "Was there somewhere in particular you wanted him to be brought?"

"The interrogation tent." Aysini informed him. "And as quick as possible without any more injuries." And then she left, because there was really no point in here staying and because she wanted to be in the interrogation tent before the otter arrived.

…

It was impressive how the instruments of torture always managed to look almost as painful as they felt. Aysini was staring at them now, reaching out to touch a few. She knew the otter had managed to cause some kind of trouble. It had taken her army entirely too long to bring him over, and, besides that, she had heard what sounded like a scream a few seconds ago. Of course, she was not unduly worried. None of her creatures screamed.

They brought him in unconscious a few minutes after Aysini was starting to get bored. Or, at least, he appeared unconscious as he sagged listlessly between the two ferrets that had hold of his arms, and were dragging him along. Blood was dribbling down one of the ferret's chins, making it appear as if he was drooling blood. The other ferret limped on his right leg. Both of them looked rather unhappy with the captive, who's lolling head revealed a slash on the back of his skull.

At Aysini's questioning glance, one of the ferrets shifted uneasily. "Oh, 'e's alive. Just a little unconscious."

"What happened?" Aysini demanded, golden eyes studying them both carefully.

"Well, he got his blindfold off." The other ferret informed her. "Took us a while to get it back on him, is all."

Aysini glanced at the blindfold, which was completely crimson now when it had been mostly white just a little while ago. She was about to speak again, when the otter groaned, awakening. His head rolled uselessly for a minute and then he spoke, in a voice half growl and half groan, something that sounded startlingly like: "Gimmie."

Before Aysini could respond, or even realize what he had said, he jerked his elbows, which the ferrets were holding loosely at this point, inwards. The ferrets, either startled by the movement or seeing no point in holding on, let go and the otter, whose paws were now tied behind his back again, fell flat on his face. He stayed there for a while, long enough for Aysini to wonder if he had knocked himself unconscious again, and then, once more, he groaned. Pausing, he mumbled into the ground, "Shoulda died as a cub." He informed the earth and then rolled onto his back and sat up slowly, shaking his head. With the blindfold still firmly tied around his eyes, he appeared to be looking around. Finally, his face paused in the direction of Aysini and he tilted his head towards her. That was when she realized he was listening to her breathing.

Aysini hefted her axe casually, staring at the otter. Eventually, she looked back at the ferrets. "You may go." She told them, and they left quietly. The otter tilted his head backwards, listening, she supposed, to the footsteps. After a while he turned his head back in her vague direction and kept tilting his head oddly, trying to hear her again. It was rather annoying.

"Do you know where you are?" Aysini inquired placing her axe down carefully on one of the many tables of torture equipment and picking up a particularly nasty looking dagger, staring down at it curiously as she waited for his response.

"Yes." His voice was calm, even, blank. Aysini's eyes narrowed and she frowned.

"If you knew where you were, what were you doing so close to the army?"

"Rat hunting." Again, his tone was impassive.

"Why?"

"To keep the Carrier safe."

"What carrier?"

"_The_ Carrier." Aysini knew he was mocking her, but couldn't tell it from his face. Perhaps the mocking was in his eyes. Moving forward she neatly cut the blindfold in two, and the bloody material fell to the ground. Blue eyes glanced unemotionally up at her before dismissing her calmly and looking around the tent. His eyes skipped without reaction over the grotesque shapes of the torture devices and settled, with the slightest flash of irritation, on his weapons.

"Those are mine." He informed her.

Aysini glanced over at the table full of weaponry. "Yes."

"I'll be taking those back when I leave."

"You think you'll be leaving?"

"Yes."

Aysini looked down at him, and, after a while, he sighed a bit and looked up at her. He was hiding everything particularly well, she noted. His eyes were like a thick sheet of ice. But ice only obscures what's underneath; it could never hide it fully. All she had to do was concentrate hard enough and she could see straight through the ice. What she saw surprised her a bit more than what the other otter had been hiding. This one was completely insane.

"You think I would unleash insanity upon my army?" She demanded.

"Your army is insane." The otter retorted, the tiniest bit of a scowl forming in his eyes. "Worshipping a Blood God or whatever darkness it is you devote yourself too. Is that not insanity?"

"What is it you worship, then, little otter?"

"Justice."

She snorted, nearly laughing out loud. "Justice does not exist."

Instantly, whatever emotions she had been able to read became nonexistent. He was completely ice now. Strange, that he could do that. "Does it not?"

"No. It is as flawed as you are unclean." She responded, shaking her head. For a while she had nearly believed this one to be intelligent. Or at least more intelligent that the masses of outsiders she was forced to endure these days. But, no, this one was as stupid as the rest. Justice. What an idiotic concept.

"But that is your opinion." He replied.

"And opinion shapes the world."

"But only one beast's world." He answered. "Unless you have some kind of power over my opinions, yours do not matter to me. To you, justice is flawed. To me, you are flawed."

"I have the power to torture you to death."

"Then you have the power to corrupt my mind and ruin my flesh, but that has no power over what I believe. Torture me, if you like, but it won't change my belief that justice is flawless. I might eventually tell you my mind has changed, but it will just be another lie because my beliefs won't change."

"You just invited me to torture you." She informed him.

"Yes, but if you were going to torture me anyway, now, at least, I will have invited you to do so. Better I give you the power than have you take it from me."

She stared at him for a while. "You are very much attached to power."

"It shapes the world."

"I thought we agreed that opinions shaped the world."

Again, the tiniest hint of emotion in his eyes, though this was much more a smirk than anything else. "Opinions are power."

For some reason Aysini felt like laughing. This crazy one before he was not without a sense of humor, even though he hid it well. But. She was here to interrogate him and, though this conversation was lively, there were some things she needed to know. "Is the Carrier a beast?"

"Yes." He answered, once again playing perfectly calm.

"Who is it?"

"An otter in this army. I believe you would call her Redsplash if you knew her."

Aysini blinked. "And what is your connection to her?"

"She carries the Stone of Khalidian." He answered and then decided to add on. "And with the Stone's power she had ordered me to guard her."

"So, this stone has power of you?" Aysini demanded.

"Over all the otters in the world." He replied.

"Then it was rather stupid of you to tell me about it, wasn't it?"

His eyes smirked at her. "No, because there is nothing you can do with it. The Stone cannot be used by a fox, only by an otter. And if you attempt to force the one with the Stone to give an order, my tribe will slaughter you."

"You have a tribe?"

"Yes."

"You reveal a lot of information for someone I haven't even stabbed yet." Aysini told him, staring down at the dagger she still held in her hand.

"By the rules of my tribe, if any of us are ever captured we can't lie to our captors, nor can we disobey an order given by them, unless it breaks another rule of our tribe."

"I could make you kill yourself, couldn't I?" Aysini questioned, already seeing the answer in his eyes.

"Of course."

"For one so obsessed with power, you do not have much of your own, do you?" He didn't answer her, so she continued. "Could I order you to kill that Carrier of yours?

He snorted. "Just asking me to would overrule the fact that you've captured me and I could kill you for it."

"Very protective of the Carrier, then?"

"We were raised to believe the only reason we were born was to die for the Carrier when the right time came." He answered calmly.

Aysini stared at him, frowning. "You don't believe that anymore, do you?" She inquired.

He gave her a glare that would have intimidated her if she could be intimidated anymore. Now it simply made her smile.

"Answer me." She ordered.

Again, he glared. It surprised her that he was not answering. Had he not said he had to obey her orders?

"I order you to answer the question." She spoke quietly, and watched the fury in his eyes shimmer behind the ice.

"I refuse." It was strange, the way he could say something cataclysmic without showing any emotion.

"Did you not say that, by the rules of your precious tribe, you had to answer me?" Aysini inquired, frowning at him now, her grip tightening on the dagger.

"I cannot tell a lie and I cannot break the rules of my tribe. If I answer you, I will have to choose which law to break. I choose to break neither."

"And break a completely different law?" Aysini demanded.

"It is a small law." He retorted, with that sense of humor he only showed in his eyes.

"And will you keep it secret from your tribe?" She was leaving entire gaps in the conversation. Gaps she would have been forced to cover with any other outsiders. Her children understood her. Rekth, even, could comprehend her when she skipped from topic to topic, reading the answers to questions in the eyes of others. If this otter was confused, he hid it far too well.

"No." That answer she had already known.

"And what punishment will you receive for lawbreaking?"

Somewhere beneath that river of ice in his blue eyes, something twitched. Cringed. Blazed. "It will be minor."

Aysini found herself smirking. "I didn't ask what degree of punishment it would be." She informed him. Of course, she should have known better than to expect him to answer to that. With an inward laugh, she spoke again. "What punishment will it be?"

He tilted his head as far back on his neck as it would go, and then rolled it back and forth. Loosening the muscles. For a while he stared impassively up at the top of the tent, before tilting his head back towards her. His tone was blank, but somehow portrayed rigid cold. "Such questioning into my tribe's ways will eventually allow me to claim Right of Silence." He announced.

Aysini blinked at him. "Which would, undoubtedly, give you free reign to try and kill me." She mused aloud.

A nod. "And every one of those blood-mad fanatics you keep in your army." A smile flashed in his eyes. Quick and sadistic.

Aysini placed the dagger carefully back in its place and grabbed her favorite axe. It whistled as it slashed the air, and met the otter's neck with enough force to immediately open a cut. But she did not kill him, because if he was guarding Redsplash, than there was reason enough to keep him alive. "You have little chance of killing me." She informed him. "And no chance at all of killing my children."

"You have no idea what I'm capable of." Came the impassive response.

"And you have no idea of what I'm capable of." Aysini retorted.

"Checkmate, then, fox."

Aysini shook her head. Completely insane, this one. He was actually smiling. For the first time she had seen, he showed emotion openly. And his smile was less than comforting. "Go." She ordered, taking her bloody axe from his bleeding neck. "Take your weapons and go back to that otter you guard."

He stood up easily and, in a movement even Aysini found difficult to follow, whirled and crouched, efficiently using Aysini's own axe to cut the binding on his paws. In any other creature she knew, excluding herself, it would have been awkward. This otter made it look like a dance. He turned again, calmly, and walked silently to the table full of weaponry.

Completely insane.

The pack, not exactly weaponry but placed on the table like everything else, he grabbed first. For a second he seemed to weigh it and then shrugged it onto his shoulders. After that, Aysini lost track of his movements. They went by quickly. How he managed to walk without tipping over from all the weight was a secret Aysini knew traced back to his tribe and whatever methods they had used to train him. At least he had the grace to chink lightly when he walked though, after two steps, he paused to adjust his pack and was silent, once again.

She thought he was going to leave without speaking, but, nearly out of the tent, he turned back to her. In his paws was a knife, and the knife flew quickly. Aysini tilted her head to the right, and the dagger whistled by. It would have gone straight through her ear if she hadn't moved.

"I'm not an idiot, fox. Nor am I one of your creatures. I will not be manipulated. Not by you. Not by anyone." For one who had just thrown a knife, he was surprisingly calm. "I will never be manipulated. Never."

Aysini only blinked. "Never again?" She asked.

For the briefest second, fire flashed under the ice in his eyes, and Aysini found herself smiling. Yes, she thought to herself, never again. By the time the thought was fully formed, the otter had already disappeared into the darkness, but the smile on Aysini's face did not disappear for a very long time.


	12. Chapter Twelve

((Mwhahaha. Took forever again, I know. I was distracted. As an added bonus, I didn't edit this. Also, I am not a doctor. I've had stitches before (lots more than I'd've liked) but I am not an expert. So I might be a bit off with the medical stuff. Oh, and lots happens in this chapter. Relatively. More than the chapter before, anyway. It feels a bit rushed, I think, but it balances out with the way the other chapters have been dragging.

I'm staring school again on Monday so it'll probably take even longer to finish these chapters.

Besides that, there's nothing else to say, really.))

…

"Darkclaw, do you think you'll ever get married?" The question, voiced in a surprisingly innocent tone caused the wildcat's head to spring up so quickly his neck cracked. What _exactly_ had the squirrel had to drink?

"Whatever spurred you to ask that question had better die quickly, squirrel. My future is not a topic of discussion open to you." Darkclaw snarled.

Root peered across at him, blinking. "You do get defensive quick, don't you?"

Darkclaw snorted. "Of the two I would prefer offense."

Long minutes passed and then, once again, the squirrel piped up. "Well, I suppose you'll _have_ to get married. I mean, Fatefiend told me you were royalty, and something about a realm being rightfully yours…so once you get that back you'll _have_ to get married, right? To have heirs?"

"One need not marry to have children, squirrel." Darkclaw retorted viciously.

Root gasped and gaped at him. "But wouldn't that cause a scandal?"

"What is court without scandals?"

"_I'm_ going to get married." Root said suddenly, changing subjects.

"And rue the day, too." Darkclaw remarked.

"And then I'm going to be _happy_." The fierceness in his tone caused Darkclaw to blink and search the squirrel's face. Ah, so that was it. The squirrel wasn't happy here. Maybe even depressed. Interesting.

"Don't count on it. You'll be dodging your wife and running from your children within a few seasons."

"Will not." Root countered.

"I'm not going to argue with you." Darkclaw snapped moodily. "Shut up and sleep."

"I'm going to get married." Root responded in a voice more than half yawn.

"Gods help you if your wife is anything like that lovely specimen of feminine delicacy _we_ travel with." Darkclaw retorted.

Silence. Then, "Darkclaw, I don't think I have to point out to you how drastically unfunny that really was." Darkclaw chuckled to himself, vastly pleased at the cold and terrified sound in Root's hollow voice.

Just then, that "lovely specimen of feminine delicacy" burst into the tent at full sprint, tripped over one of Root's pillows, and fell, screeching curses that caused Root to bury his head in either embarrassment or disgust, face first into Root's mountain of pillows. Immediately, what appeared to be feathers exploded into the tent and by the time Darkclaw had lit a torch, the entire tent was full of them.

Root scurried down the mountain and grabbed a violet pillow, gutted down the center, and held it to his chest as if it had once been a close friend. "_You killed my pillow_!" He announced in a mournful wail.

Redsplash struggled to her feet and looked around frantically, a dagger clutched in her paw. "Oh, damn. Damn, damn, damn, damn, _damn_!" She hissed.

"What?" Darkclaw inquired casually.

"I _forgot **Sade**_!" She exclaimed.

"How does one manage to forget a blue-painted shadow that weighs more than you do?" Darkclaw asked, never blinking.

"It's not as difficult as it sounds!" Redsplash shouted.

"You _killed it_!" Root shouted again.

"It's impossible to sleep anymore, did you know that?" Darkclaw asked of both of them. "I'm not getting involved in this crisis. If your little shadow is stuck out all alone in the dark somewhere you can chase him down and good luck. _I_ am getting some sleep."

"Your concern is touching, wildcat." Sade remarked from the darkness outside the tent, his shape nearly invisible. He turned to Redsplash. "However did you manage to arrive here only half a minute before I did? What could have taken you so long?"

Redsplash scowled at him, looking faintly embarrassed. "I got lost." She admitted.

"You got lost." Sade repeated. "Of course." He stepped quietly into the tent.

"Lose a fight?" The wildcat questioned, staring at the bleeding otter before him.

"Several." Came his blank reply.

Redsplash was gaping at him. "You know, you could've just run with me. Those rats were fat. They'd never have caught us if we ran fast enough."

"It wasn't the rats who caught me." The otter seemed almost offended by the very idea, except for the fact that no emotion showed on his face and Redsplash didn't know if he _could_ be offended.

"Find yourself a batch of particularly vicious trees, did you?" Darkclaw inquired, apparently forgetting about his oath to sleep.

Root scowled down at the wildcat from his vantage point on his pile of pillows where he clutched the ruined violet pillow and glared hate on Redsplash. "Don't mock the trees, Darkclaw. They get their revenge for it later."

"Yes." Darkclaw returned, an eyebrow raised. "And so does wine."

"_Not_ what we were talking about." Root retorted.

"How is it that your skin is still _attached_?" Redsplash had hold of Sade's right arm and was staring incredulously down at a particularly nasty gash.

For a second it seemed like his eyes were smirking, but it must have been the fire from Darkclaw's torch flickering across his eyes. "These are but scratches. You worry far too much."

"_Scratches_?" She demanded, sounding grievously insulted. "_This_ is not a scratch." Now she was prodding at the cut on the underside of his wrist. "_This_ is how beasts attempt suicide."

"That will heal quickly." Sade returned and, being emotionless and calm the entire time, removed his limb from her grasp. "If I bandage it."

"You know how, then?" The squirrel asked. "To bandage all those cuts and keep it from being infected?"

Sade stared at him. "I know enough to have survived."

"That's _not_ what I asked you." Root replied, blinking. "I _asked_ if you know how, because if _you_ don't, _I_ do and, seeing as how there's no way we're getting any sleep unless Red's calm, and Red's not going to be calm until _you're_ properly bandaged up, I'd help you."

"My _name_," Redsplash growled, "Is Red_splash_." But she was ignored.

Sade glanced down at the multiple wounds. "I have survived this long."

Root rolled his eyes. "Yes. I already knew this. All I'm asking is if you can keep yourself from bleeding out and staining the tent or wasting my time later when you're delirious with infection and there's not much I can do."

Sade stared at him for a long time and then, blankly, turned to Redsplash. Root's head swung around to the female otter too. "You can't be serious." Root muttered. "What is this? Are you asking her _permission_?"

"Don't be an idiot, Root. What would he need my permission for?" Redsplash growled.

"If this tent isn't silent in five minutes…" Darkclaw let the threat hang in the air ominously, though no one noticed because no one listened.

"Look, you two, whatever this strange little slave ritual is about, can you just _solve_ it? All I want is to get to sleep." Root grumped.

"Then _sleep_!" Redsplash shouted.

"I'm not a slave." Sade remarked impassively at the same time.

"That's it." Root snapped. "I'm not helping. If those cuts get infected, we're chunking him out of the tent because I _refuse_ to listen to his deranged ramblings when the fever takes him." And with that he burrowed into the pillows and was not heard from until late morning.

Darkclaw nodded to himself, growled forbiddingly, and then, passing the torch that was the only light source to Sade, went into the shadows of the tent and curled into a tight ball.

Redsplash glanced at Sade. "I don't know much about healing…" She admitted, frowning uneasily.

"Don't trouble yourself." Came his blank response. "I am more than capable of surviving these scratches. I would suggest that you sleep."

Redsplash scowled at him and hesitated, but then shrugged and went back over to the corner she had claimed as hers. Perhaps a quarter of an hour went by before the light went out. But it was a lot longer before Redsplash finally got to sleep.

…

Kislin stared at the sunrise, shaking his head. Something about it seemed…foreboding. Far too much red in the sunrise today. He frowned and settled onto the ground, uneasy. Things were going on at this camp. Dark things.

Devman had been murdered. Strangled. And no one had seen it. In an army numbering well into the thousands, that was quite a feat. Kislin hadn't believed it at first. _Someone_ had to have seen Devman dying. But no one had. Not one of the creatures had come forward, even with a false accusation. That was not normal. Devman would have said they were frightened, but perhaps even he wouldn't have known of what. What could scare an entire army?

The answer: Kani. Aysini. Rekth. They certainly scared Kislin. The belligerent rat general who beat his own species and murdered the others. The maniacal fox with the army of religious fanatics. The joking assassin whose daggers appeared out of nowhere and whose smiles never seemed to disappear. Kislin knew he was not one of them. All his life he had been a leader. The one others turned to when they did not know what to do. He had never had a childhood. But, among these three, he felt like a child in the middle of warring giants, and he knew the only reason he was still alive was because they saw no point in killing him.

He was their balance, in a way. He was what reminded them that there were other creatures in the army besides themselves. Or, at least, he reminded Kani and Rekth. Aysini never forgot her "children." Every now and then, when Rekth and Kani were being particularly vicious, Kislin would speak. They would stare at him like just remembering he was there and then remember who they were and _what_ they were. Generals. They couldn't let personal feuds go too deep. Even Kani would not risk his own army.

Kislin shook his head. He knew that when they came to the mountain he would be useful. Rekth was an assassin. Kani was a sailor. Aysini was a raider who took what her army needed and burned the villages to the ground. Devman had been the one who knew of sieges, having gone through five successful ones and lead three himself. Kislin had lead one and was experienced with open warfare. Eventually the other three would need his knowledge. Eventually.

As it was, he just stayed out of their way now. Devman dead. And they were so caught up in their feuds and their functions that they did not realize the threat. Their siege-genius was dead. All they had now was Kislin. Kislin who they did not notice unless he forced them into it.

The Nameless One had thought he knew the five of them when he put them together as one army, but he had not seen the five of them for nearly seven seasons now, except for Rekth who had been his assassin until three seasons ago. The Unnamed One must have thought they would each contribute something, but it had never worked that way. Devman and Kislin withdrew from the others, Aysini never got involved, and Rekth and Kani argued fiercely with each other over absolutely nothing just to see who would lose control first. Sometimes it drove Kislin mad. But it was a madness he could never show.

Sighing, Kislin gave the sun one last, annoyed look, and turned to head back for the encampment. And that was when he came face to face with death. Death didn't seem too alarming in first glance, but it became pretty frightening when Kislin saw the dagger. By the time he started to scream it was already over.

The beast knocked him over and started stabbing him. Screaming at the pain and in desperation, Kislin fought. But it was like fighting fate. His actions had no effect. And the stabbing hurt so much. Made him scream louder every time he felt the blade slash into him.

It took him perhaps thirty seconds of the nonstop pain to realize this _creature_ wasn't stabbing to kill. Just to hurt. To hurt badly. And then, with an almost casual indifference, the beast slashed the large muscles on the backs his lower legs and the largest muscles upper arms, leaving him unable even to crawl very effectively. With a practical nod, the creature stood up, sheathed the dagger, and walked away.

Kislin screamed for a help that would not come. Tried desperately to slither forward, but only for a few seconds. Blood loses itself quickly when there is so much thirsty ground to be quenched. His last thought was of his childhood, and he should have _never_ left the plains.

…

Rekth was only mildly concerned when his creatures told him Aysini was executing rats. After all, as long as they weren't his to worry about, then they could worry about themselves. He wouldn't have been concerned at all if his captains had not told him they were Kani's rats. That wasn't good. Of course, Rekth and Kani had always argued, but it had been one against one. If Aysini was throwing herself into the rivalries among the generals, than things would get out of hand. After all, there was only so much one army could take.

He decided not to watch. If anything would set Kani off, it would be two foxes smirking to themselves as his rats were slaughtered. The fox hadn't bothered to ask why Aysini was executing Kani's rats and why Kani had allowed it. Stupid, he knew, but he felt tired today. Tired of nearly everything. So tired that he couldn't even sleep.

Grumbling like an old mouse who had lost his cane, Rekth went to Kislin's tent. After all, who better to bother than the one no one bothered to notice? The fox had barely noticed himself how the other general liked to fade into the background. But now that Devman was dead and all alcohol belonged to Kislin, Rekth wasn't about to let Kislin fade too far away.

But, when he got to Kislin's tent, he found it empty. Grabbing hold of the nearest beast, a terrified little stoat, Rekth demanded very strong wine mixed with whatever they could get their paws on. What they brought to him singed his throat, but it was sufficient. Gave him enough energy to curse and spit it out, anyway. And at this time of morning was there really much more you could ask for?

The wildcat appeared out of nowhere, looking grim and rather unpleasant. "Rekth, I discovered something…unappetizing."

Staring blearily down at his flask, Rekth nodded. "What a coincidence. So've I."

"I think you should see this before someone else does." Darkclaw continued.

Rekth glanced up at him. "Is it something that I don't want to see?"

"It is something that you have to see." The wildcat retorted.

Rekth's mouth bent upwards into a smile. "Have a sip." He suggested, holding the flask up to the wildcat.

Darkclaw took it, drained it, and threw the flask over his shoulder quickly. "Come on, fox." He commanded and started walking, leaving Rekth behind to gape at the empty flask and the fact that the wildcat wasn't vomiting his insides up all over the pretty grass.

…

Rekth stared at Kislin's mutilated body. It was grotesque. Even when in his worst of moods, Rekth hadn't done something like this. Severing muscles was all well and good, but cut either the legs so they crawl or the arms so they stumble. Both? What was the point? Kislin would have bleed out so fast he couldn't have slithered far. There was no pleasure in the kill. Just…just cruelty.

"How did you say you found this?" Rekth inquired calmly, staring at the wildcat.

"I went to see if I remembered this part of the journey." Darkclaw rumbled. "I did not. It appears to me that you've been marching in the wrong direction."

"Long direction." Rekth replied absently as he kicked Kislin over onto his back and winced at all the knife wounds that leaked blood. "Circling around to come in from behind. Easier to cut off their routes of retreat that way."

"They will not retreat." Darkclaw retorted.

"We know. Devman said it was some kind of mental thing. Make them realize there is no way out and that's the only thing they'll want." Rekth shrugged.

"Did he know much about sieges?" Darkclaw asked quietly.

"Yes. Him and Kislin. The rest of us…" Rekth shrugged, crouching beside the body in an attempt to recognize the type of knife that would leave these type of cuts.

"Has it occurred to you that there might be a _reason_ the siege leaders have been killed?" Darkclaw demanded.

"Who would do that?" Rekth retorted. "Who would be brilliant enough to come up with a plan like that and stupid enough to carry it out?"

Darkclaw's only reply for a while was a snort. And then, when Rekth stood up, wiping Kislin's blood on his pants, finally spoke. "Who wouldn't?"

"I wouldn't be sayin' things like that around Kani." Rekth muttered. "Aysini's not particularly interested in you unless you threaten her creatures, but Kani…he thinks you've insulted him. And, besides that, he's an insecure bastard."

"You two fight then, do you?" Darkclaw asked shrewdly. Rekth eyed him, frowning. Oh, he should shut up now. Walk away and pretend this never happened. Or kill him. Slit the wildcat's throat in the middle of the night because the cat was too smart for his own health. But, then, Rekth was too tired now for such idiocy.

"Nonstop. Naturally, Kislin was the one who kept us from killing on another." A smirk crossed his face.

Darkclaw seemed to consider this. "So, if this continues, you or Kani will be the next to die." He observed.

Rekth blinked. "And why is it that your brilliant incite into the criminal mind spares Aysini?"

"It's rather obvious." Darkclaw appeared rather annoyed that the fox hadn't caught on. "Whoever's doing this wants the army to fail. Killing Aysini would lead her creatures to revolt against the rest of the army. As it is, two generals against one fanatic army would win easily enough. And then it would be a pathetic army that arrived at Salamandastron, but it would still be an army. One general in command of a terrified army versus fanatics…"

"So, let's go for the positive outcome on this one. Say, Kani dies and then Aysini. Her creatures revolt, army goes to chaos…whatever happens to me?"

"If you're smart? You run. If you're not, you die." Darkclaw retorted.

The fox smirked and Darkclaw's eyes narrowed. Something had just been said there that was of drastic importance, but now it was Darkclaw not catching on. And he didn't not like that feeling. Did not like it at all. Still smirking, the fox spoke. "I'd best go tell Aysini and Kani before they stumble upon this and blame each other."

…

"And, you know, back before squirrels were invented, everyone just wandered around listlessly wondering why no one had big enough tails." Root watched Redsplash, who was staring at him blankly, as he spoke.

"Squirrel, I think you're brain has been permanently influenced by alcohol." The otter told him quietly.

"You'd _think_ that, _wouldn't_ you?" He retorted and was about to launch into a story about a drunken flying squirrel and his multiple collisions with this conniving trees and his uppity in-laws, when the other otter came stalking into the tent, back from his brief hourly jaunt around the encampment to make sure, apparently, that nothing important was happening. Only, this time, the front of his shirt was drenched in blood. Redsplash thought, for a wild second, that he had gone out and killed someone _without _her, but then he lifted the shirt off and stared down at the bandages he had wrapped tightly around his stomach. Very little of it was white, and, when he pressed a paw against the bandage, the crimson splotch expanded, and even more of the white bandage was dyed red.

Root lifted an eyebrow. "You said you could heal yourself." He accused.

"I can." Came the bland reply as blue eyes were lifted to stare into Root's green ones. "Do you have a needle?"

Root blinked. "Oh, come on, it can't be _that_ bad. Otherwise you'd've bled to death by now." He blinked. "Probably. Maybe." He paused and then scowled. "More than _likely_."

Sade blinked at him. "You need rest." He decided.

"Need _sanity_." The squirrel retorted. "And don't go sticking yourself with needles. Knowing _my_ luck you'll end up gutting yourself and Redsplash well go on another rampage."

"Rampage?" Redsplash demanded, glaring suspiciously.

"Don't act all innocent, Redsplash. You nearly killed yourself the _last_ time someone you knew died, and, drama-addict as you are, who knows what you'll do _this _time?"

"Sade, hurt him." Redsplash snapped. "Hurt him _lots_."

Sade gave her a look for a second and then took his dagger and started up the mountain of pillows. Root scurried down it. The otter jumped from the top of the mountain and landed in front of him. Before the squirrel could manage escape, the otter slammed the hilt of the dagger into the back of the squirrel's skull. Root crumpled, unconscious.

Redsplash scowled at him. "As in with _pain_, not unconsciousness." She growled.

Sade stared at her and then glanced down at his bloodstained shirt. "It will have to be later." He told her. "I have lost too much blood."

Redsplash stared at him. "What?"

It appeared, for a second, that he was having a hard time standing straight. "I need to rest." He announced.

"Well, I'm not stopping you." Redsplash snapped. "But I'm going to go see if I can find Darkclaw. Stupid wildcat wandered off."

Blinking twice in rapid succession, the other otter gave her a very long look. "Then I will go with you."

"I thought you were busy bleeding to death." She retorted poisonously.

"I'm sure I can spare some time for you." There it was again. That damn sense of humor of his that wasn't obviously a sense of humor at all.

"Oh, _lovely_." Redsplash growled. "Come on, then." And she stamped out of the tent, Sade following quietly.

…

"So it was the _wildcat_ that killed him." Kani was taking this surprisingly well. He looked merely questionably sane rather than outright and completely mad. Still, Rekth watched him with a raised eyebrow, frowning.

"I doubt it." Rekth shrugged. "Didn't seem to me like the type to show off his kills."

Aysini was silent. "How will we deal with the soldiers?" She demanded slowly. "Devman and Kislin's creatures. What will be done with them?" She was changing the subject, but Rekth decided against mentioning that. It was unsteady ground they were prancing across now, and he didn't want to be the first one to fall and be swallowed up by it.

"Well…" Rekth shrugged. "We split them up into three equal-"

"I only want the rats!" Kani objected.

Rekth blinked at him. "All right…Kani gets the rats, and then Aysini and I split the remaining number in two. Easy. Simple."

Kani's eyes narrowed. "I don't trust you, assassin."

"I know." Rekth frowned at him. "But there's hardly anything I can do about that."

"You're taking this too easily." The rat looked on the verge of accusing him of murder again.

"What? Should I perhaps throw a fit and accuse everyone in the tent of murdering a general?" Rekth demanded. "Should I pin all my anger on a hapless otter? Or, maybe, a wildcat much bigger than I am? Would _that_ appease your suspicions, Kani?"

Kani scowled at him. "You're jokes are not amusing, fox."

"That one wasn't a joke." Rekth retorted.

"Silence." Aysini stood, and something glistened in her golden eyes. Something like…laughter. "We will stay here for three more days." She announced. "I will need that time to train the new soldiers."

"What're you gonna do to 'em?" Kani demanded suspiciously.

A smirk. "Cleanse them."

Rekth tilted his head back and to the side, meeting her golden gaze with his narrowed one. He'd heard that term many times, and had seen many "cleansings" of ones Aysini deemed unworthy of admittance to her little cult. Never before, though, had he seen a "cleansing" of possible soldiers. This would be, to say the least, interesting. Rekth would welcome his soldiers with, of course, a massive amount of alcohol and several bonfires. A few beasts inevitably got a little too drunk and fell into the flames, but what was a revel without a decent amount of deaths?

"Am I invited to this cleansing, then, Aysini?" Rekth inquired, smiling a bit.

She stared at him and smirked. "You may observe, if you wish." But she said it with a tone that was decidedly too amused. Rekth knew he was getting himself into something dangerous, but couldn't find it in himself to care.

"Good." He murmured and heard Kani growling curses.

…

Redsplash had found herself a place out of the encampment and was sitting there. The other otter was somewhere around her. No doubt bleeding to death in silence. Damn him. Sighing, she glanced around for him. There. He had abandoned his shirt again along with the bandages and was in the process of threading what appeared to be string through a needle.

"What are you _doing_?" Redsplash demanded, scowling. She had turned him back on him for a _minute_, and here he was, preparing to mutilate himself with a needle. Sometimes he was like a child. A child that could kill far too easily and take pain far too well, but a child anyway. And if _that_ was annoying, Redsplash couldn't remember what was.

"Stitching up a wound." He replied calmly and glanced down at the gash on his stomach.

Redsplash eyed it expertly. Having lived through several wounds in her time, she was very much well-informed when it came to what required stitches and what did not. "Without an anesthetic?" She asked finally. He did not answer. "Tell me, is this fascination with your own pain a _new_ thing, or has it been around a while?"

He turned to look at her. "Stitching will close the wound sooner."

"It doesn't _need_ it." Redsplash objected. "It'd heal by itself eventually."

He nodded. "But this will heal it _faster_."

"Why does _that_ matter?"

"The quicker I am healthy the better I will be at defending you." He retorted blankly and, once again, directed his gaze on his wound.

Redsplash glared at him. "I am perfectly capable of keeping myself whole." This time he only looked at her and she could tell he didn't believe her. The bastard. "Besides, how'd you get that, anyway? Where were you last night?"

"Conversing with a fox." Came the expressionless reply as he stretched out carefully and brought the needle to his stomach.

"I _forbid_ you to do that!" Redsplash bellowed at him. The needle froze. "And _which_ fox? Rekth? Why were you talking to _him_ for?"

"The other fox general." He told her. "Aysini."

"Oh." The fox that made her nervous. She scowled. "_Why_?"

"Because her creatures attacked the rats that were about to attack you, and, in the process, caught me." The needle was still hovering over his stomach.

"Put that damn needle _down_." Redsplash ordered. The needle dropped to the ground beside him. "How'd they catch you?"

"They set a trap." He informed her. "I walked into it."

"Wasn't very bright of you, was it?"

He looked at her and, for a moment, Redsplash reconsidered insulting the otter. After all, he was rather quick when it came to killing others. "I was distracted by your defenselessness." No matter how dull his tone was and how empty his eyes were, Redsplash could still feel the insult in the words. It made her very angry.

"I am _not_ defenseless!" She objected loudly, practically screaming.

"Where are your weapons?" He asked blankly.

"Weaponless and defenseless are _not_ the same thing!" She growled.

He blinked and reached into his bag, pulling out a roll of bandaging. Redsplash watched him wrap it around the gash so tight it was amazing he could breathe. Standing up slowly and gripping the needle in his paw, he carefully snapping off the thread and held just the needle. "Do you intend to fight in this war the army is marching to?" He inquired quietly.

"I'm going to kill the badger." She told him coldly.

He blinked at her. "And do you know how to fight?"

"_Yes_, I know how to fight." This was all rather irritating. She wished he'd shut up.

"Brawling and fighting are not the same thing." He was mocking her. She knew it, despite the fact that he sounded completely impassive about it. Viciously she wondered if she could order him to stab himself to death with that needle of his.

"One works as well as the other." Was her only reply, despite the anger she felt at him.

"If you wish, I can teach you how to fight." He offered emotionlessly.

She scowled, considering it. It took her about a full minute to realize this was probably a good idea. After all, she was about to go to _war_ and she hadn't been to one of those for a very long time. Actually, she'd only been to one, and she wasn't sure that even counted. Besides, in all honesty, she could probably use his help. And it wasn't like he could laugh at her if she tripped over herself and nearly died. He didn't show any emotions after all.

"Uh…" She considered it for a second longer and tilted her head. "All right."

…

The number of rats Kani added to his army was about a quarter of what Aysini and Rekth got. Each. But, then, they got the "lesser" species. Ferrets, weasels, stoats, and the like. Snorting and rolling his eyes at the look on Rekth's face, Kani led the rats away. The rats looked thankful. After all, no one wanted to end up in Aysini's army. And Kani didn't blame them. The golden eyed fox was a demon. No one wanted a demon as their leader.

Rekth watched him go with mild interest. The idiot rat's army was much smaller than Rekth's and Aysini's now. Perhaps he didn't care, but it was still a weakness. Sighing, the assassin turned to the fanatic. "So, Aysini, how're we going to do this?"

Aysini glanced at him. "Simply divide them in half." She replied.

"Of course, but, no offense to you, very few of them are going to want to be in your army." Rekth shrugged disarmingly when she sent him a suspicious glance. It was just the truth.

"They fear the Cleansing." Aysini remarked. "As well they should."

Rekth blinked. "I've got an idea." He announced.

She blinked at him in a way that spoke a lot more than she did. "Do you?"

"Oh, don't be alarmed, Aysini." Rekth suggested with a grin. "It's a good one."

"What is it, then?" She demanded.

"We split them up telling them that one group is for me and the other is for you, but then we _switch_ them, and I take the group that was supposed to be for you and you take the larger one full of the cowards that snuck over after we divided them."

Aysini scowled at him. "You give me the cowardly ones, Rekth?" She demanded harshly.

He snorted. "Aysini, we both know the cowardly ones won't survive your Cleansing and we might as well get rid of them now. I certainly don't want them in _my_ army."

Aysini considered this. "I suppose…" She rumbled.

"Good." Rekth exclaimed. "Let's get started splitting them up then."

…

Root found himself staggering out of the tent at sunset. There was a revel going on around him. Rekth was welcoming some new members to the army. Tiredly, Root wandered where the fox had found new recruits, but didn't spare much thought for it. His head ached fiercely, and he wasn't all that sure it was just from the wallop to the back of the skull he'd taken when Sade had knocked him unconscious.

"A squirrel!" Shouted a ferret and lunged forward, brandishing a wickedly curved sword.

"Where?" Root retorted listlessly and looked around, swaying just a little bit. Perhaps that whack to the head had been a bit stronger than he'd originally thought.

"Wait! Calm down Nokec!" Bellowed another. "That's the squirrel we were telling you about."

The first ferret looked doubtful. "The one who drinks wine as if it were water?"

"Aye. That'd be the one." Agreed a third.

"Nice to know I'm remembered." Root replied serenely and settled next to one of the ferrets who passed him a bottle of something. Glancing down at it, he shrugged, lifted it, and drank.

…

They were being buried alive. The very idea made Rekth's tail twitch. First three droplets of blood were flicked onto their forehead, then they were chanted over, beaten when they trembled, made to dig ridiculously deep holes, and now they were being buried alive.

"Aysini…" Rekth was standing next to the fox as she watched her "children" nail beasts, some screaming at the tops of their lungs for mercy, others petrified into silence, into coffins that were being lowered into the holes they had dug. They had, literally, dug their own graves.

"If you do not have the stomach for this, you may go." Aysini snapped.

"I was just wonderin' if they did this to you." Rekth replied, defensive. What right did _she_ have to dismiss _him_, anyway?

"To be fully Cleansed is to bury the sullied side of your soul underground." She responded distractedly.

Rekth snorted. "I feel sorry for whoever tried to bury _you_."

"It took three of them. I killed five." Aysini snapped. "But they kept me down for five hours. These will only stay down three. Still. The majority will die."

"You're awful calm about that." Rekth observed.

"They will go to the Dark Forest Clean of the dirt that mars them." Aysini's voice was violent with conviction. "It is the best anyone can ask for."

"Most just ask for eternal happiness and go with it." Rekth watched wide-eyed as a particularly hysterical stoat was forced into the coffin by four brawny ferrets.

Aysini glanced at him. "Few who watch the Cleansing can speak. It is nearly unheard of for them to speak in sarcasm."

"My mother will be proud." Rekth breathed. "Oh, look at that one. He's gotten his paw nailed to the wood." The weasel he was talking of screamed in pain and terror.

"Ah, that one will not last the hours." Aysini observed. "Though I see a surprising amount who will."

"How does this work?" Rekth asked. "Aside from the Cleansing and the burying and the religious side of it. Is it just that they go crazy from fear and the inadequate air supply?"

She gave him a long look. "We do not question how our Gods use their power."

"You don't talk of them much." Rekth answered. "For one so devoted, you rarely even mention them."

"That is because we are not supposed to acknowledge they exist. For fear of outsiders such as yourself speaking Their Names and Sullying them."

"Well, I'll keep it all quiet if it's that big of a secret." Rekth promised. "Don't like secrets that big myself, though. They have a way of stabbing you in the back eventually."

"You speak of Dasnrion." She informed him.

Rekth blinked, surprised. "I speak of what?"

"The day when the Outsiders Sully the Names of the Gods and the Gods destroy the world for the Outsiders' impudence." Aysini replied calmly.

"Huh." Rekth considered this. "I hate it when a small group ruins it for the rest of us."

Aysini and Rekth watched in silence as the last creature, a particularly wiry ferret that kept squirming out of his captor's arms, was caught and placed, surprisingly quietly, into his coffin and buried in the ground. Rekth suppressed a shiver. To be buried alive…to feel the dirt slamming onto the wood above you and know that, even if you were to break free, you would still not find air…

"I'm hungry." He announced determinedly.

"If you are going to eat, now would be the time." Aysini replied. "When the children Rise, we will have a difficult time of controlling them. Also, some of the corpses will ruin what hunger you have."

"I've seen the dead before, Aysini." Rekth retorted dryly.

"Perhaps." Aysini stared as her children continued to pile dirt on the buried. "But those that cannot take the Cleansing often take it upon themselves to end their lives."

Rekth frowned. "You took their weapons from them…" Of course he knew what she was going to say next. He didn't say it himself, though.

"Some die of blood loss when they rip themselves apart with their claws." Aysini replied blandly. "Others we die up who have died due to lack of air because they screamed it all away with the pain of self-inflicted wounds."

"Huh." Rekth blinked. "So, do you not eat?"

"I have already eaten." She answered. "But if you desire food, my children can bring you nourishment."

Rekth nodded slowly. "That would be appreciated."

Aysini gestured and, in a freakishly short time, one of the dark-garbed and blood-splattered beasts brought him a steaming cup of…something. Rekth stared down at doubtfully and then, with the suspicion of a fox drinking from a goblet offered by another fox, sipped it. Astounded by the taste of it, he drank it down quickly and scowled when he saw the bottom of the goblet. Still, deciding not to get greedy, he tossed the goblet back to the beast who had given it to him, and glanced at Aysini.

"I won't ask what was in that." He said decisively.

"Good." Aysini replied distantly. "If you were to vomit it up, my children would take it as an insult."

Rekth looked at her out of the corner of his eyes and scowled. She ignored him. "How much time left?" He demanded.

"They have been down for fifteen minutes and seven seconds." Aysini replied calmly.

"How'd you know?" Rekth demanded, curious.

Aysini turned to him. "When someone buries you underground for five hours, Rekth, you develop an amazingly accurate internal clock." She told him.

"Oh. Right." Rekth shrugged. "Suppose you would."

…

Darkclaw stood in the middle of Rekth's revel, stony and silent while everyone around him shrieked and moved about excitedly. This army was in danger, he noted. Not only did they not know who their enemies were…a fact emphasized by their ready acceptance of Root without questioning him nearly enough, but their generals were dying. One by one. And viciously. These kills were not simple slit throats. It appeared as if someone was enjoying their pain, but not enjoying _causing_ it. That didn't make near enough sense and Darkclaw bared his teeth at the world, irritated by it.

To make it all worse, Darkwing was very nearly late. Tomorrow would be the last acceptable day. After that, Darkclaw would have to go roaming across the _continent_, find some twittering little birdies, and kill them slow enough to leave an impression. And leaving Redsplash and Root alone in this army would not be a good idea. Especially considering that they attracted trouble as bleeding babes attracted sharks. Redsplash did have Sade to guard her, but Redsplash with power was nearly as unfortunate as Redsplash defenseless. Her inability to keep herself out of danger coupled with a false sense of complete security was going to cause a lot of trouble. It would be better for everyone if that stupid hawk just showed his face tomorrow.

And, despite all of this, Darkclaw couldn't help but be amused. If he intended to take over this army, it would be pathetically easy. Though he would have to convince Kani and Rekth to kill off Aysini's entire army before he took control. The golden-eyed fox seemed far too insightful to allow rebellion. But, then, Darkclaw had already begun poisoning Rekth's mind against her. Or, at least, had playfully planted those terrible seeds of doubt. The problem was there seemed to be something that kept Rekth from considering Aysini as a threat. It might be simply that Rekth didn't want to bother with killing her, but Darkclaw had noticed the interest in Aysini's entire army. The idiot fox had cultivated himself a fascination with Aysini's religion. Like a cub watching his first kill, he didn't seem to possess the ability to look away.

Well.

This was a challenge, then. But if it weren't, Darkclaw would hardly be interested. It had been a long time since he'd been in a situation where he actually had to think about his next move. This would do him good.

Baring his canines in a smirk that caused several to stare in agitation, Darkclaw stalked purposefully back to the tent. He needed to talk to Sade.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

((Sorry it took so long. Was being leeched off of by a friend (wanted an idea, she said, would take five minutes, she said) and got myself a bit too involved in the world she wanted me to help create. Now _I_ want my own world. Pfft.

I proved Sade wasn't perfect in this chapter. Figured it was about time. After all, perfection is annoying.

Darkwing shows up again. Poor birdie.

The Cleansing continues.

Err…

Oh, yes, and the re-introduction of a rather popular character who seems to have earned himself a bad reputation.

And I have also, I noticed, grown far too fond of leaving chapters off at the beginnings of dreams.

Good news, though. Fatefiend shows up.))

Darkclaw stalked into the tent to find Redsplash asleep. Sade was nowhere to be found, at first, but Darkclaw waited patiently for several long seconds, and then the otter slithered in from where he had been standing somewhere near the tent entrance. The black otter's eyes flickered to Redsplash for a second and then settled on the wildcat. "What is it that you want, wildcat?" The otter demanded quietly.

"Many things, otter. Few of which you'd understand." Darkclaw retorted and unsheathed one of his broadswords, sitting down easily on the ground and beginning to clean the immaculate blade.

Sade responded by pulling a throwing knife out of its sheath on his calf and proceeding to test its perfect balance. "I understand more than you will ever guess."

"And do you understand her?" Darkclaw inquired innocently as he gestured idly with the sword at Redsplash, who was snoring contentedly.

Sade glanced at the otter and Darkclaw watched his expression carefully. But no emotion was revealed and, inwardly, Darkclaw rolled his eyes. The wildcat waited several long minutes for a response, but knew all along that he would not get one.

"Tell me about this tribe of yours." Darkclaw commanded.

Sade's eyes flickered back to Darkclaw and Darkclaw caught the slightest glint of emotion. Hatred. Well, that was certainly surprising. But, then, Darkclaw was not sure if the otter's hatred was directed at him or at his tribe. Perhaps both. Perhaps neither. The otter was damnably hard to read. "What do you know of my tribe?"

"Rumors." Darkclaw answered. "Lies."

"What lies have you heard?"

"Lies I will keep to myself."

"How can you be sure that they are lies?"

"Because I know lies when I hear them."

"You know nothing." Sade replied blankly.

Darkclaw bared his teeth in a grin. "You must be a grave disappointment to you tribe."

Sade looked up at him, and this time his gaze stuck. He did not speak, but, then he did not have too.

"Even I can see your emotions." It was a lie, really. Darkclaw had only seen one…that hatred. But, still that was far more than could be expected.

Another flicker of something in Sade's eyes, but this was harder to read. Darkclaw puzzled over it while Sade responded. "You are lying, wildcat."

"Am I?"

"Yes."

Darkclaw laughed. "But you _were_ a disappointment, were you not?" Sade's gaze was still locked on him, still emotionless, and still unblinking. No answer, but no denial. "Dangerous, isn't it, for a failure to be guarding the Carrier?"

Sade's entire face shifted for the tiniest of seconds. His lips drew back in a snarl, his blue eyes burned, and now Darkclaw realized what the flash of emotion a second ago had been. It was a warning, but it was a warning too late to heed now. Because, now, the otter's wrist was twitching and the knife was flying. The hilt slammed into the wildcat's skull and he had half a second to marvel at his own stupidity before he collapsed, knocked, to his eternal embarrassment, unconscious. At least the otter had the skill not to slice Darkclaw's skull open. _That_ would have been too embarrassing to live through.

But Sade, who still had not even begun to heal from last night's encounter with Aysini's beasts, had finally managed to cross his own limits. His vision swam wearily for seconds and he fought to stay conscious, but it was a fight he knew he would lose. Slowly, he buckled and found himself asleep.

Redsplash, who had been woken up by the wildcat and the otter's conversation, scowled at the both of them. "_Idiots_." She grumped and climbed to her feet, figuring she might as well get Root. After all, one of the lunatics could have actually gotten themselves hurt and the last thing she needed right now was a corpse in her tent.

…

"_What is your name?"_

"_I have no name."_

"_What is your name?"_

"_I have no name."_

"_What is your name?"_

"_I have no name."_

…

"_Is he progressing?"_

"_Yes."_

"_How well?"_

"_Surprisingly well. Basic torture does not affect him anymore."_

"_This is disturbing."_

"_Indeed."_

"_Proceed with the training. Extend the amount of energy."_

…

"_What is your name?"_

"_I have no name."_

"_What is your name?"_

"…_I have no name."_

"_What is your name?"_

"_I…have no name."_

"_What is your name?"_

"_I don't **have** one."_

"_What is your name?"_

"_I don't **have a name**!"_

"_What is your name?"_

"_**I have no name**!"_

"_What is your name?"_

"_You **know** what my **name is**!"_

"_What is your name?"_

"_You should know."_

"_What is your name?"_

"_I was named after you."_

"_What is your name?"_

"_Do you really wish to know?"_

"_What is your name?"_

"_Sade. What's yours?"_

…

"_Is he progressing?"_

"_The progression is slowing."_

"_Good. I was worried he would turn out like his father."_

"_His mother is docile. The Betrayer has limited affects on his son."_

"_He has enough of an affect to be worrying."_

"_We could execute him."_

"_Havoak would not allow it. We cannot go against the Carrier's wishes."_

"_The Carrier is missing."_

"_Are you suggesting that the simple fact that we cannot find our Carrier gives us leave to go against his wishes?"_

"_No. But this one is still dangerous."_

"_Indeed. Continue with the torture resistance training, but be careful with this one. Leave out the Fifth Level. If this one ever turns out like his father, we do not want him to be unbreakable."_

"_He might be already. There is a chance he is simply playing with us."_

"_If that is the truth then he is exactly like his father and the Fifth Level will be the Level that breaks him. Avoid it and do not question me again."_

…

"_Where are you going?"_

"_Away."_

"_Why?"_

"_To learn to be a warrior."_

"_Aren't you already?"_

"_Not in the eyes of the tribe."_

"_**I** think you are."_

"_You are biased."_

"_What's that mean?"_

"_It means your opinion is slanted unfairly in my favor."_

"_You use a lot of big words, you know that?"_

"_I've been made aware, yes."_

"_Oh, well. I still like you."_

"…"

"_Are you gonna find Havoak?"_

"_I do not know."_

"_Please?"_

"_It is not something I can promise, Dwynwen."_

"_I'll be good if you bring him back."_

"_He might be gone forever."_

"_He wouldn't leave me. Cuz if he did, I'd never talk to him again."_

"_A torture too terrible to bear."_

"_You're leaving too. It's not fair. Who'm I gonna talk to?"_

"_Otters your own age?"_

"_They're all **boring** and grown-up like."_

"_Then it is time you grow up, too, Dwynwen. You cannot be a child forever."_

"_I can, too."_

"_You can try. But they'll take it from you eventually. Better to let it go than have it taken from you."_

…

"_You never smile."_

"_Is there some reason I should?"_

"_It makes you real. Emotions make you real."_

"_Not where I am from."_

"_Does this mean you were born among bastards?"_

"_Don't question my kind. I don't question yours."_

"_You don't question anything. You just kill whoever you think needs killing and call it a good day."_

"_No day is good."_

"_You're also pessimistic…What I can't understand is why you stay around here if you are searching for that Havoak of yours."_

"_If Havoak wants to be missing, I will never find him."_

"_I thought you said he was not trained as a full warrior of your tribe."_

"_No, he was not."_

"_Then how…?"_

"_He was trained as a tracker, so he knows some tricks."_

"_Enough to trick you?"_

"_No."_

"_Then why wouldn't you find him?"_

"_Because he is the Carrier. If he makes it clear that he does not want to be followed, I cannot."_

"_Sounds oppressive."_

"_You spend your life sending creature after creature to his death."_

"_Point taken."_

"_Who are you?"_

"_I have no name."_

"_What a coincidence. I have many."_

"_What are they?"_

"_I will exchange mine for yours."_

"_I will consider it."_

"_I have many, but one of the first was Slay."_

"_Ah."_

"_You have heard of me, then?"_

"_I have heard of you."_

"_Will you tell me your name?"_

"_No."_

"_Will you at least tell me where you are going?"_

"_Nowhere."_

"_You'll have a hard time finding such a place, I'm afraid."_

"_And where are you going?"_

"_Someplace unpleasant."_

"_You will have a far easier time finding your destination."_

"_Unfortunately. I find it strange, though, that we should meet here, where there is nothing."_

"_There is always something."_

"_I suppose."_

"_I will be going."_

"_Not one for conversation, are you?"_

"_I was never trained in it."_

"_And were you trained in everything else?"_

"_Everything that matters."_

"_Well, then, I suppose this is goodbye."_

"_There was never a hello."_

"_Then we have no need of a goodbye."_

"_Exactly."_

"_Perhaps I will meet you again, nameless otter traveling nowhere."_

"_Doubtful."_

"_I find that the more doubtful an occurrence, the more likely it is to happen."_

"_You speak a contradiction."_

"_I speak the truth."_

"_Then you speak a contradiction."_

"_If that is how you see it."_

"_I see many things."_

"_Goodbye, then."_

…

"_Who are you?"_

"_Who are **you**?"_

"_Who are you?"_

"_Redsplash."_

"_I've heard some disconcerting stories about you, Redsplash."_

"_Are you obsessed with the color black?"_

"_Very disconcerting."_

"_You've heard stories about me? What kinds of stories?"_

"_Disconcerting ones."_

"_Yes, I think I get that part. Now, lower your bow and let me leave or shoot me. I don't have an ample amount of time set aside for lunatics."_

"_You are a lunatic."_

"_Very well, then. I don't have ample amounts of time set aside for **other **lunatics."_

"_I'm afraid you'll have to set aside some for me." _

"_Will I? Well…wait! You're an otter!"_

"_Where did you get the Stone of Khalidian?"_

"_It was given to me. By an otter who died. His name was Havoc."_

"_Havoak?"_

"_No. Havoc."_

"_Did he have white fur?" _

"_Yes…"_

"_Then it was Havoak. How is it that he died?"_

"_He jumped in front of an arrow."_

"_Did he take his own life, then?"_

"_Yes. In a way. No. There was an arrow, and it was coming at me, and he jumped in front of it."_

"_And when he died you took the Stone?"_

"_No! I don't rob corpses. The arrow didn't kill him immediately. He gave it to me right before the poison killed him."_

"_Poison?"_

"_It was on the arrowhead."_

"_So, he did it on purpose, then? He died…for you?"_

"_Yes."_

"_That's the first time the Stone of Khalidian has been a death-gift for over two centuries…Havoak must have seen something in you that I do not see to give such a gift to you. Did he ask you to give it to anyone?"_

"_No. Why?"_

"_Because then you would be simply a Transporter and that would make far more sense. Anyone can Transport the Stone to its proper owner, but if he gave it to you…"_

"_So, what can this necklace thing do?"_

"_The necklace cannot do anything. It is the Stone that holds the power."_

"_What can the Stone do, then?"_

"_What do you want it to do?"_

"_I don't know. I haven't really thought of it. I haven't seen another otter since Havoc died. If I asked you for your sword…?"_

"_I'd give it to you."_

"_You'd **choose** to give it to me?"_

"_If you wish to think of a moral obligation as something you have a choice in."_

"_It's just a moral thing?"_

"_For most, yes. For those that refuse to obey its power there is a tribe of warriors that will enforce its will."_

"_An entire tribe?"_

"_Of warriors. Havoak was one of them. I am one of them."_

"_You are? Does your tribe not stay together?"_

"_There are several levels of warriors among my tribe. I am training to reach the last level, and must learn from the world for five seasons."_

"_How does one 'learn from the world?'"_

"_By traveling across it."_

"_What's your name?"_

"_Sade."_

"_Sounds like sadist."_

"_Yes. Well."_

"_Are you? A sadist?"_

"_Occasionally." _

"_Where's this tribe of yours?"_

"_A season's travel away for me. Perhaps three seasons for you."_

"_What's that mean?"_

"_What do you want it to mean?"_

"_Not what it sounds like it means."_

"_Then it means nothing." _

"_I've had a wonderful time here, but I've got to leave now. I might have a few beasts hunting me by nightfall and would like to be a few miles ahead of them."_

"_Who will be hunting you?"_

"_Vermin, most likely. I'm leaving their army."_

"_Do you wish for me to kill them?"_

"_You would do that?" _

"_If you wished for me to kill them, I would."_

"_I've changed my mind. I'm going back to the vermin army. And you're going with me."_

"_Of course."_

…

"Somehow a half-drunk squirrel doesn't seem like the best option for medical care."

"You forgot the part where I'm half-sober."

"And mostly incoherent."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing. Where'd Darkclaw go?"

"Off to catch himself a birdie, I think."

"A what?"

"Well, I saw this big bird flying in circles overhead and I pointed it out to Darkclaw and he got up and left."

"I hope the bird pecks his eyes out."

"Oh, come on, Red, you saw what happened. The otter threw the first punch…or, you know, dagger."

"Like Darkclaw didn't deserve it! Don't defend him!"

"Why are you attacking him? Just because he made your slave faint-"

"He's _not_ my slave."

"If you say so. But, as former slaves, I think we should recognize slavery when we see it."

"If it's slavery, it's self-enforced."

"Oh, really, Red. He was probably brainwashed as a cub. Wouldn't know true freedom if it spat in his face."

"Don't call me Red."

"You need to get past Fate's death, Red_splash_."

"Don't tell me what I need to do."

"No, really. Dwelling like this is only harming you."

"I'm fine."

"You're a liar."

"You're a drunk."

"_Half-_drunk, thank you."

"For two nights in a row?"

"Maybe."

"Hmph."

"Jealous?"

"Insanely."

…

Darkwing's right wing was bloodstained, as were his beak and talons. When he folded his wings in, he folded his right awkwardly, as if it pained him. He carried no letter, and he looked fatigued and harassed. Darkclaw watched him curiously as the hawk caught his breath.

"What has happened, hawk?" The wildcat asked as soon as the hawk was breathing passably.

"You have been betrayed." Darkwing announced.

"What?" Eyes narrowed, Darkclaw reached for one of his broadswords.

"Not by me, idiot wildcat." The hawk snapped waspishly. "By Ijuiline. Your brother swayed her loyalties."

Darkclaw let his arm fall to his side. The hawk would not lie to him, he knew that. But Ijuiline betraying him? He had thought it impossible. Apparently, she had developed a new personality trait since his last visit. He had not known her fierce loyalty could be melted. "How?"

"Bluefang has hostages. Children of hers, I believe."

"Ah." Darkclaw's lips drew back in a sneer. "I warned her that the brats would become a liability."

Darkwing stared at him. "Never bring children to this world, wildcat. You don't deserve them."

Darkclaw scowled. "And how are _your_ children?"

"I do not know." The hawk snapped. "I have not seen them for two weeks."

"I do hope one of them hasn't died." Darkclaw remarked.

"I doubt they have. Sorrowsong would not let harm come to them."

"Ah, yes, the albino hawk. Is she in good health, then?"

"She still bears the scars you put on her, cat."

"I still have hers." Darkclaw responded with a feral grin.

"Tell me, where is the ferret? I did not see him…"

"He was killed."

"So the rumors are true…" Darkwing muttered quietly and then glanced guiltily up at Darkclaw.

Darkclaw's green eyes narrowed. "Rumors?"

"I heard…from a passing otter that the ferret was dead and that the otter had joined with a vermin army. It was how I knew to search for you here."

"How would the otter know such things?"

"I do not know how he knew. I didn't even know if he knew for sure."

"Do you know the otter's name?"

"No." Darkwing answered truthfully. After all, no one knew the Ghost's true name.

"Could you find him again?"

"Probably not. And I do not think I would have the time to search." Darkwing gave an odd shrugging motion. "I thought you would like me to check and see if any of your other allies had been…compromised."

Darkclaw nodded. "Yes. At once."

"I will need time to recuperate." Darkwing announced suddenly. "Ijuiline's archers have grown more accurate."

Darkclaw remembered the bloodied wing. "Your wing?"

"It impairs my flight little, but enough. If I do not rest, I will die."

Darkclaw tilted his head. "Then I will allow you a week to rest, and I will allow you to rest with your family, but remember that you owe me a very large favor that I will one day call in, hawk."

Darkwing felt, oddly, like he was selling his soul and like he didn't care. He had expected the wildcat to order him to the nearest vermin ally the next day. A week…"Let it be a favor then, wildcat." The hawk replied and waited until Darkclaw was a safe distance away before, a little less gracefully than normal, taking to the sky.

…

"All right, we've got to stop this." Root announced wearily, scowling up at Redsplash.

"Stop what?" Redsplash inquired as she watched Root finish bandaging the last of the slashes on Sade's back that the otter had, apparently, not been able to reach to bandage.

"Letting that one get himself nearly killed." Root told her as he climbed up the mountain of pillows to perch beside her. "He's really going to die, eventually."

"Oh, I don't know. He might be invincible." Redsplash responded sarcastically.

"I can see how it would be easy to think that." Root replied far more seriously. "What with the way he keeps getting up every time he gets knocked down, but he's just like you, Redsplash. He's just like the rest of us. He's got a heart that pumps blood and a stomach that digests food and lungs that pump air. Damage any of those organs and he's out. Gone. Dead like the rest of us would be. And it doesn't even have to be a major injury. Infection and blood loss kill too. As does exhaustion."

"As does what?"

"You know the way he keeps skipping along with all those cuts of his? While he's off jumping around and throwing pointy things at beasts, his body's trying to heal. Doing one or the other is fine. Doing both can wear you out to the point you get too weak to do either. Those wounds don't heal, he dies. Simple, really."

"Huh. Well, I figure he knows his limits better than you do, Root."

"Yes, I think he does. I just don't think he cares."

"You think everyone's suicidal." Redsplash snapped, remembering when he thought she was going to throw herself off the cliff after Fatefiend died. Never mind the fact that she almost had.

"I don't think he's suicidal. You have to be alive to want to die."

"He _is_ alive. You said he was fine."

"Really, Redsplash, you don't pick up on subtleties very well, do you?"

"No one likes you anyway, squirrel."

"I don't know why I tried to talk to you anyway. You're hopeless."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Anyone ever told you that you were childish?"

Redsplash blinked and looked away. "Fate called me immature a lot."

"Wise ferret, that one."

"He was."

"And if he were still alive he'd tell you how stupid this really is."

"What is?"

"This. Everything. The whole thing." Root waved his arms in a circle to emphasize his point. His brilliant use of body language seemed only to confuse Redsplash further.

"Whole thing?"

"Yes. The army. The plot for revenge. Sade. Darkclaw. _Everything_."

"Oh? And how is wanting to avenge Fate's death stupid, squirrel?"

"Because what's the point in avenging his death with your own? How _exactly_ are you supposed to kill a badger?"

"I'll have some help." Redsplash snapped, anger blazing from her eyes now. She had grown far more prone to great fits of anger since Fatefiend died and it was become more and more apparent.

"Will you? And who's going to help you on this suicidal jaunt of yours? Who're you gonna take with you, Redsplash?"

Redsplash glared at him and glanced around furiously, knowing the answer but not about to say it aloud. But her gaze settled on Sade for a second longer than was necessary and Root followed her eyes.

"You're gonna send him to die, aren't you?" Root was furious now as well. The complete injustice of the circumstances was starting to get to him. "_Aren't you_?"

"It's not-"

"There is a _line_, Redsplash. There is a line you _do not cross_, and _sending someone else to die_ is pretty far _over the line_!" The squirrel was practically raving. Redsplash had no idea he could get this angry.

"If he doesn't want to die, he won't obey the order!" Redsplash snapped back.

Root's eyes blazed and then the fire suddenly died and he slumped, looking defeated. "You just don't understand, do you? It's just completely out of your faulty mental grasp…"

"Understand what?"

"He doesn't have a _choice_. Whatever you tell him, he _has_ to do. It's not slavery, Redsplash. Not like _ours_ was. We could choose if we did or didn't do what we were told. We'd get punished for it, but we still had a _choice_. **_He_** has no choice. There's no will _in_ him to disobey. I said it was slavery, but it's worse than that. It's like…like…" Root trailed off, his face contorting into a grimace as he searched for the right word.

"Like?" Redsplash questioned.

"I don't know, Redsplash. _You_ figure it out." Root snapped and hopped off the cushions, going in search of his ferret friends and their supply of alcohol. This situation was killing him.

…

The first coffin they popped open appeared to only surprise Rekth. The ferret inside was one big bloody gash. It took the fox several minutes to realize the ferret had slit his own throat. Aysini was watching him for some kind of reaction. Rekth swallowed his disgust and winked roguishly. "Forgot how much blood ferrets had in 'em." He remarked cheerfully.

"You need not lie, fox. I can see your emotions." Aysini told him.

"But if I didn't lie, would I even be a fox?" Rekth retorted.

"Yes."

"Never were one for battles of wits, were you?" Rekth mumbled under his breath as he watched several brawny creatures pick up the mutilated corpse and take it off for burning. They said something about waiting, but Rekth was watching the other coffin being opened.

Inside lay was weasel, curled up like a cub, asleep. Rekth frowned, wondering how someone could manage to _sleep_ while buried underground, but it soon became clear when they rolled the corpse around a bit, that this one had died of lack of air. Asphyxiation. Disgusting way to die. Especially in such a small space. Inwardly, Rekth shuddered, but he did not think Aysini noticed. Her eyes were trained on the corpse of a weasel that had been in her army for less than a day and was already dead.

Her soldiers dug up coffin after coffin and paused, waiting, for Aysini to approach. The next five were all dead, each having run out of air. One of them had slashed the top of his coffin with his nails, nearly breaking through. Rekth swallowed and scowled. This morbid little "Cleansing" was beginning to make him nervous. What was the point to it? If she wanted to weed out the weaker ones, couldn't she have ordered mass executions? Or was that what Aysini was doing?

Suddenly, the group of soldiers pulling a coffin out of a hole drew back, fusing with the group of "children" watching the proceedings silently. It took Rekth a while to figure out why they had not stayed by the coffin as the others had. This coffin was _moving_. It jerked and twitched, rolling completely over twice. The foxes eyed it, Aysini's stare cold and calculating, Rekth's wide and startled. He knew at least _one_ of the beasts had to survive, but how many beasts actually got to see a coffin jumping around? It was sickly funny, is what it was, and Rekth had to bite back a hysterical chuckle.

Aysini stalked over, kicked the coffin once, and then ripped it open. A ferret lay within staring up at them. His shoulders were raw and bleeding, perhaps from slamming them against the coffin walls so much. He did not seem to comprehend what was happening. Aysini looked down at him, her golden eyes blazing into his brown ones. Rekth stood back, not part of this, but not exactly being excluded. He felt that if he spoke up, though, Aysini would rip his tongue out.

After perhaps a full minute, Aysini reached in and pulled the ferret out of his coffin. He staggered, nearly falling over, and Rekth, reacting on instinct, caught him. Aysini turned quickly, her bloodstained cloak whirling, and gave Rekth a look of confusion and resentment. Drawing back quickly, but not so quickly that the ferret fell over, Rekth shrugged, feeling a bit of anger starting up inside him. This wasn't funny anymore. Burying others alive was all well and good, but when Aysini started glaring at him for common courtesy, Rekth had to draw the line. Of course, considering that courtesy was not at all common among vermin, Rekth was willing to let it go this once. Oh, and Aysini had her entire army and, currently, Rekth just had himself.

"Do _not_ interfere." Aysini hissed to the fox as the ferret was grabbed by another group of Aysini's army and dragged off, screaming in high pitched wails, to some unknown place within her camp.

"Where's he going?" Rekth demanded, ignoring her command.

"If you wish to find out, do _not_ interfere."

"Fine, fine, I won't touch anything." Rekth rolled his eyes and stuck his paws into his pockets. "Happy?"

"Be silent." She ordered and looked to her children. More coffins were dug up and waiting to be opened. It was time to move on. With a final warning glance to Rekth, Aysini moved to the next coffin.

…

"Advigilian?" The voice was quiet, tentative. Well, Advigilian supposed they had a right to be. He'd been downright testy for weeks.

"What is it?" Advigilian demanded softly, not even bothering to lift his head to see who was at his door. Leria, the sole survivor of the last Long Patrol mission Advigilian had sent his hares on before calling every single one of them back. Leria's face was marred permanently by the torture the vermin had put her through. She'd been beautiful once. Now even that beautiful voice of hers was ruined and she spoke in a harsh rasp. All of the children were terrified of her, including her own.

"There's an otter outside." The badger detected minor confusion in her mutilated voice. "He says he would very much like to come in."

"Tell him we're full up." Advigilian replied. "He needs to march on to the next death trap."

"Sir…" Leria did not approve of his humor. She never had.

"I did order that no more were allowed in the mountain." Advigilian told her.

"But Riscon claims to know this one." Leria replied. "Says he fought with him to liberate some oppressed rabble."

Advigilian blinked and stood slowly. "I suppose I had better send him away personally, then. Riscon will sulk like a newborn if we don't respect those he thinks he knows."

"Yes, sir." Leira replied and Advigilian smiled at her as he passed through the doorway she was standing just outside of. She might have smiled back. Her face was so disfigured it was impossible now to know.

…

Fallen stood outside the mountain, alone and annoyed. The badger had closed the mountain off completely. He was not allowed in. It had taken him a full hour just to get a hare's attention, though he was pretty sure they had known he was out there all along. After all, how could they not? He'd practically been throwing rocks and shouting. Perhaps this was all Riscon's doing. The hare seemed to have an odd sense of humor. But surely the hare understood that at times like this, nothing was left to laugh at.

"He's out there, is he?" Questioned a voice Fallen did not recognize.

Mumbling.

"Makes sense, I suppose. Riscon! What's this about fighting against him?"

"_With_ him, sir."

More mumbling.

"Well, send him away. We don't need another Liy incident."

"-couldn't possibly-"

"-could. Minds break, Ris. Loyalties fail."

"Not this one's."

"Oh, really? Did you think Liy's could?"

"-promised not to bring it up again."

"We all nearly died thanks to that one. If you think there's anyone out there that can't be persuaded to betray, you are far too naïve to have lived this long."

"And what about you?"

"I've never been put in that situation, Ris."

"-bloody-"

"You'll scorch the children's ears off with language like that."

Silence.

"I think I've offended him."

"Yes, sir." An odd, rasping voice.

"Well, where's this otter than?"

"Staring in our direction, sir."

"Is he really? Oh, yes, I see." A pause and Fallen narrowed his eyes, but was unable to see anything through the miniscule slit in the mountain. "Go home, otter. There's no room for you."

"I'm not the vermin, badger, I did not come here to lay siege to your mountain. Let me in. I need to speak with you." Fallen replied.

"Rather commanding, isn't he? Almost makes you think he's smarter than he looks."

"Sir, I am sure he can hear us."

"Oh, what? So am I. Now, otter, what is it you need to speak with me about?"

"Your stupidity."

There was a sigh. "Then why should I let you in?"

Fallen sighed, blinked, and decided to see if his name could get him in. "Do you know who I am?"

"Do _you_ know who you are?"

"Yes."

"Then why are you asking me?"

Fallen blinked and decided to move on. "Some call me Ghost."

There was another sigh, this one followed by a muted curse. "I don't suppose you'll just go away, will you?"

"It is not in my plans."

"Might as well let you in, then. Can keep a better eye on you that way." A brief pause. "Leria, get him inside before the sun drives him crazier than he already is."

"Yes, sir."

…

"The ferret you killed had friends." Fallen told the badger as he sat in a small room full of maps and a large table, upon which an old map was placed. Various black rocks were set out around the map, and all of the white rocks were clustered in one place, except for a single white rock far removed from both black and white.

"Of course he had friends. He was the son of the Unnamed One. Besides that, he was traveling with a squirrel, an otter, and a wildcat. Obviously, he had friends." Advigilian retorted.

"They'll try and kill you." Fallen warned.

"Of course they will. It's what friends are for."

"Do you know who the wildcat is?"

"Looked to be one of the Warheart's span. Possibly their recently exiled Northern prince. Why?"

"Because it was."

"Why would he be traveling with the son of his greatest enemy?"

"The same reason he was traveling with a squirrel and an ex-otter slave."

"What reason would that be?"

"One only they would understand. The problem is, badger, that they will want you dead, and they will want you dead soon."

"He killed one of _my_ hares. Was I supposed to let him get away with it?"

Fallen watched the wide brown eyes of the badger lord narrow and tinge the faintest bit red. "No, I don't suppose you-"

"And _if_ they decide to kill me, let them come. Better I die than anymore of my hares." The red became more prominent.

"They will bring destruction for your entire mountain."

"There are ways out of this mountain that they enemy will never discover. If the situation gets bad enough, I will find a way to get my hares out alive."

"How would you manage that?"

"You said they wanted me dead, did you not?" The broad shoulders lifted in a shrug and the laughing brown returned. "I will challenge them to a battle."

"They will slaughter you."

"But my hares will escape."

"There's only a slight possibility that they will."

"Which is more than they would have if they stayed in the mountain if the siege is successful. Starvation is not an easy death."

"Will your hares abandon you?"

"Not willingly. Not the lot of them, anyway. But I can make them listen if I wish. Besides, they will have the children with them. They will not want to take risks with the children."

"Or let the little ones see you ripped apart by the vermin."

"No. I don't suppose they'll want them to see that either. Too bad, though. I imagine it'll be quite a show if it comes to that."

….

Redsplash was finally getting back to sleep. Sade was still unconscious, in a deep silent slumber that Root assured her was perfectly natural. Darkclaw was nowhere to be found, and Root was, predictably, out with his ferret buddies. Stupid squirrel.

She had not thought herself tired, but, as soon as she closed her eyes, darkness bloomed in her brain and dreams commandeered her mind.

…

_Fatefiend was standing where the mouse usually stood, and he had, clutched in his paws, the mouse's sword. His grin was mischievous as he tossed the sword from paw to paw. "Oy, Red, look what I stole."_

"_The mouse is gonna kill you." Redsplash observed, not bothering to remember Fatefiend was dead. Why think such disturbing things? Was Fatefiend not standing right in front of her?_

"_Mouse can't do what the badger already did." Fatefiend retorted cheerfully and then, suddenly, winced. "Oh, right, I've got to talk to you about somethin', Red."_

"_Talk to me about what?" She asked, easily ignoring the cheerful reference to his own death._

"_Everything. And we've got to do it quick, while the mouse is distracted with all those new vermin arrivals. What're you doin' runnin' around with foxes who bury their own anyway?"_

"_Who's burying what?"_

_Fatefiend rolled his eyes. "Seriously, Red, I'm gone for **two** **weeks **and you've already messed up your life."_

"_It's your fault. **You** died."_

_Fatefiend waved the sword at her. "Be quiet. We've only got a few minutes before the mouse realizes what I'm doing."_

"_He doesn't **know**?"_

"_Of course not. We're not supposed to be talking. You're not dying, are you?" He snorted. "Well, so you are, but he says it's not **enough** yet, that I've got to **wait**. Idiot mouse."_

"_Wait…" Redsplash blinked, surprised and definitely unsettled. "I'm dying?"_

"_Oh…oh, damn." Fatefiend winced, blinking. "Wasn't supposed to tell you that."_


	14. Chapter Fourteen Emotional Retard

((School got me. I'm sorry. But, the good news is I'm back. Christmas break, you understand. I'm updating everything, including Vengeance Born which I haven't edited in for a _very_ long time. Oh, and I started a new story, which explains why Ghost/Fallen is the way he is. It's called Spirit Fading.

Fatefiend gets to say an awful lot in this chapter mainly because he doesn't get to say anything for a very long time. And also because this is the last chapter (I think) that he'll be one of the main characters in. So, say goodbye to Fatefiend. He's moving on.))

…

"_I can't believe I'm **dying**…" Redsplash whined, sitting down on the mist-covered ground, and scowling unhappily. "What is? A sickness? Am I sick?"_

"_Yes."_

"_What kind of sickness? What's it **called**?"_

"_Stupidity." The ferret told her, twirling the sword distractedly._

"_Fate!" She snapped. "Don't make fun of me! I'm **dying**!"_

"_Well, yes, but it's your own bloody fault. Goin' to kill a badger lord, are you? Enlisting as a soldier in my father's army?" Fatefiend shook the sword at her threateningly. "You're just very lucky my father's messengers are so stupid, or the generals would've gotten that message about you and captured you on sight. Seriously, Redsplash, what do you hope to accomplish? If you're goin' to die, couldn't you die fighting my father? I mean, fighting a **badger**? What's the point? He's just going to rise up as a legend and you're going to rot on the battlefield as carrion."_

_Redsplash scowled angrily up at him. "For your, Fate. For **vengeance**."_

"_Oh, forget about me." He suggested blithely. "I'm dead. I don't care about vengeance, only about you. So abandon this idiotic quest and get on with your life."_

"_What life?" She demanded bitterly. "Without you, there's nothing left."_

"_Nothing left?" He exclaimed, sounding vaguely offended. "What do you mean there's nothing left? You promised me we were going to Redwall after this. Just because I'm dead doesn't give you any reason to go around breaking promises! Go to Redwall, Red. I'll never get to see if their food is as good as the fables, but **you** will. So, go."_

"_No. I'm **getting** vengeance. I don't want to be alive anymore." She stared up at him. "I'm ready for it to be over now, Fate. I'm tired of it all."_

"_Oh, boo hoo. **I'm** tired of sittin' around listenin' to the mousie go on an' on about how the world's fallin' apart and how it's all **your** fault, but you don't see me goin' off and killin' myself over it, **do** you?"_

"_You can't die, Fate."_

"_Did you ask about my ability to die? **No**!" He stared at the sword thoughtfully. "You know what I'd like to see, Red? I'd like to see you save the world. Just to show the mouse he can be wrong every hundred seasons or so. Just because I know you can."_

"_What's the world ever done for me?" Redsplash demanded._

"_That's not how it works, Red, and you know it." Fatefiend told her solemnly. "We had our fun. We escaped from my father and we swore we'd never be heroes, but, Red, there's things you don't know about me. Why do you think the mouse let's me stay up here with him and the rest of the 'Oh, but **I** saved the world against an infinite amount of vermin **plus** one, so I win!' group? I'll give you a hint: it's not for my charming wit and astounding good looks."_

_Redsplash glared at him. "You're talkin' nonsense, Fate. Oh, but I guess you're allowed to get away with that, seein' as how you're **dead**!"_

"'_m not talking nonsense, Red." He stared at the sword again, seeming to be bewitched by the shine of it as he tilted it one way and then the other. "I did my heroics. As a cub, back when it mattered the most. I did my great valiant deed. Oh, I suffered for it, too, as heroes should. And then I met you and you completely corrupted me." He grinned, still staring at the blade. "But they forgave me that. Said you were corrupting **all** the heroes and they couldn't hold it against me."_

"_**What** are you talking about?" She demanded, annoyed and still worried about the whole dying prospect._

"_Some things I did in the past, Red, that got me where I am. A few stupid things I did for the world that're the only reason my father isn't in complete control of it yet." His smile turned bitter and he lowered the sword. "But I think I'd take them back, if I could. Because I never realized that by saving the world I'd have to condemn you."_

"_What?"_

_The ferret sighed heavily, the sword and his eyes both directed at the ground. "Red, it was never fair. You know that, don't you? That it was never fair?"_

"_That what was never fair?" Then she snorted. "Never mind. **Nothing** was ever fair."_

_The ferret nodded, that same, strangely bitter smile settling over his face again. "Yes. Nothing was ever fair. But, Red, I never meant for it to end up like this. Everyone's going to die, except **him**." He snarled then, something he had rarely done in life. His lips drew back, his green eyes flamed, and he snarled in fury. "Except for that bastard father of mine. He's going to kill them **all**, and you're going to help him."_

"_I am **not** helping **him**!" Redsplash screamed, jumping to her feet, unable to believe the accusation._

_Fatefiend's head snapped up, and he glared at her. "What are you doing in his **army**, then? What are you doing killing one of the last true enemies he's got left?"_

_Redsplash blinked, staggering back a step in surprise. "But, Fate…" She said, her eyes confused and her tone frantic. "But that's different. That's about **you**."_

"_And I'm his son, Redsplash. I'm **nothing**!" His eyes flamed again and then he sighed, staring at her sadly. "Don't you understand that, Redsplash? I'm not alive anymore. I'm nothing anymore. I'm just a ghost. You don't have to get vengeance for me. I don't want it and it'll damn you for good."_

_Redsplash glared at him. "I was under the impression I was already damned."_

"_And what idiot told you that, Red? The mouse? What do you think he knows about being damned? He wasn't born vermin and he was never broken by one. **I** was. I know **exactly** what being damned is like and you," he gestured at her with the sword, "are not damned. Not unless you go to that mountain. Then there's not hope for you. Ever."_

"_I'm **going**, Fate. I don't care what you say, I'm getting revenge!"_

"_For **what**? For what he did to me? Redsplash, I'm past being killed. I don't **care** anymore!"_

"_For what he did to **me**!" Redsplash bellowed. "For what he took from me! For **everything**! For never having to go through what I did and for killing the one thing that got me through!"_

_Fatefiend stared at her, considering and cheerless. "Is that it, Red? Do you think you can't survive without me? Is **that** what you think?"_

"_It's not your business what I think!" Redsplash snapped, turning away from him._

_Fatefiend watched her, green eyes haunted. "You're wrong, Redsplash. You **could** survive without me. You just don't want to."_

"_If you're dead why don't you just stop talking to me and go sleep in that grave I made for you?" Redsplash snapped."_

"_Maybe I will." Fatefiend said quietly. "Whatever I do, it's not your concern anymore. You've already decided what you're going to do, and I won't stay with you. Not if you're just going to die. I've already died once. I'll not do it again. Not even for you. Goodbye, Redsplash."_

_Redsplash whirled around, but he was gone. Or, rather, **she** was gone. Back into a normal dream. Far, far away from Fatefiend who had finally decided to leave the living alone._

…

Redsplash woke up with a headache. She had the strangest feeling she was supposed to remember something…something important and depressing, but couldn't figure out what her memory was trying to tell her. Eventually, she decided to just give up on it and open her eyes. She wouldn't miss one more gloomy thought. She had plenty to keep her nightmares fed.

Sitting up slowly and wincing against the bright light of midmorning, the otter surveyed the tent. Sade was sitting with his back freakishly straight, turned so that he could keep an eye on both the entrance to the tent and on her.

"You're supposed to be asleep." She accused.

He turned so he was staring fully at her. "Am I?"

"Yes." She nodded, very much convinced of this, despite the fact that her foggy brain refused to think straight. "Root said…Root said you needed to rest."

"The squirrel is right." He blinked. "I do need to rest."

"Then why _aren't_ you?"

"Am I not?"

"You're not asleep."

"I do not have to be asleep to be resting." He told her calmly, and Redsplash was reminded of his following her around yesterday even when he seemed ready to faint. He was oddly stubborn for an otter who couldn't even be bothered to have an emotion or two every now and then.

"I think you should be asleep." Redsplash told him doubtfully.

"It would not be wise."

"Could I order you to sleep?"

Sade looked at her blankly. "You could issue the order, but there are some things I cannot accomplish."

Redsplash rolled her eyes. "Look, Sade, I survived for _seasons_ on my own. I do _not_ need a guard right at this particularly moment. So why don't you just get some sleep now and I'll wake you up if I decide to do something particularly suicidal?"

He gave her another of those blank looks that conveyed just how stupid he really thought she was and how little he really believed in her ability to protect herself. "I did not say I would not sleep. I said I could not."

"You didn't say anything." Redsplash snapped. "You just talk in funny riddles and never say what you mean."

"I mean nothing."

Redsplash gaped at him. "You-you are…" She found herself speechless for a second and this just worsened her mood. "Im_possible_."

Sade just blinked at her and turned his face towards the tent opening. It seemed that he mumbled something. Something that sounded distinctly like: "I have no name."

"What?"

Sade turned back towards her. "Did you have a question?"

Redsplash just sighed and stood up. "Do you have any idea where Root is?"

"He did not return after leaving last night." Sade glanced at her. "I could find him."

"Do that." Redsplash ordered and Sade started to stand. "No! _Wait_!" She shouted and glared angrily at him. "_You_ are _supposed_ to be _resting_." She wondered if he had deliberately tricked her into that, but it didn't seem likely. What interest did Sade have in Root?

"I do not think finding an unconscious squirrel will be too entirely exerting."

"You're staying."

Sade stared at her and the subtly shifted his gaze downward, grabbed a long knife from his boot and began to sharpen it diligently.

"Will you _stop_ working?" Redsplash snapped. Did this creature not understand the idea of lazy relaxation?

He glanced up at her and slowly returned the knife to its spot.

"Good." She grumped and rolled her eyes. "Honestly, why don't you ever just _rest_?"

"Because rest is a waste of time and an opportunity for an enemy to use the time you're wasting."

A blink. "So," Redsplash started with a grin, "when'd we start gettin' chatty?"

"What?"

"Normally you don't answer questions. _Especially_ with full sentences."

"I don't answer questions from the wildcat or from the squirrel." He answered, completely ignoring the second part of what she said.

"Oh, so you'll answer _my_ questions."

"Of course."

"Oh, right." Redsplash shrugged. "Seems rather strange to me that you have to do whatever someone with this little rock tells you to."

Sade turned his gaze towards the light, his eyes narrowing. "There are a few things that we would not have to obey."

"Like what?"

"I can't answer."

"Can I order you to?"

He seemed to smile without actually moving his lips. "No. You cannot."

"So I won't know if I'm breaking these little rules until they're broken?"

"Yes."

"That's just stupid." Redsplash snapped, meaning it very much. "If you don't know you're breaking the rules when you break them, you didn't do anything wrong!"

"You did not intend to do anything wrong, but intent has nothing to do with right or wrong. You can have the best intentions possible and still commit injustice." Sade told her, his face and tone blank, but still managing to sound a bit smug.

Redsplash scowled and sulked for a while. She hated how Sade never said what he meant. Just went on and on in some nonsensical rambling using words she could barely understand in ways she couldn't grasp. "So, what happens if I break these rules?"

"Depends on which of them you break."

Well, that was rather straightforward. Good for him. "Oh? And what if I break the most sacred of those little rules of yours?"

"Then I kill you."

All right. Perhaps that was a bit _too_ straightforward.

…

"That's it!" Redsplash announced, having enough of sitting watch Sade staring out of the tent, jumping to her feet. "I'm going to find Root."

Sade started standing but stopped when Redsplash glared. "Am I to stay here?"

"Yes!" Redsplash snapped. "And if Darkclaw shows his ugly face…ask him where exactly _he_ thinks he's been these past couple hours! Leaving me alone with the psycho who never talks! I can't _believe_…" Her voice trailed off as she stormed out of the tent. Sade watched her go, his eyes unreadable.

A few seconds passed. "Psst! Sade!" Came a whispered, earnest tone. "Sade! Is she gone?"

Sade blinked. "Redsplash is no longer in the tent." He answered calmly.

"Oh, good." Root's shadow could be see lifting itself up from where it had been crouched all morning outside the tent, walking around, and then into the tent. "Good thing she's not the observant sort or anything." He muttered, his tone relieved.

Sade glanced at him. Root had seen better days; one of which had obviously been yesterday, or, more specifically: last night. The squirrel looked about ready to fall over at the slightest gust of wind. "I assume you had a reason for hiding?"

"Of course I did!" Root answered, as if insulted at the very idea that he would cower without a reason. "Every time Redsplash talks to someone, she ends up yelling. I don't think I could handle her screaming at the moment. Seeing as how I'm in my last hours and all."

"Are you?" Sade inquired politely.

"Yes." Root revealed, collapsing onto his pillows. "My brain is eating its way out of my skull. It's rather uncomfortable."

"I suppose it would be."

"But I learned my lesson, Sade." Root said earnestly, as if somehow everything would be all right if he could just convince someone that he'd learned. "When the ferrets offer you something and won't tell you what it is, _don't_ drink it. No matter what they call your mother."

Sade just stared at him, unemotional as the rock that had brought him here. Root rolled his eyes and sighed heavily, shifting in the pillows. They clustered around him as if they lived, as if they were worried about their squirrel owner.

"Not much of a talker, are you?" Root inquired, paused for a reply he doubted would come, and then continued. "Can't say I blame you. It's easier to be quiet all the time than it is to speak out."

Sade was silent. The squirrel did not seem to require a reply. In fact, if anything, he seemed to be pleased that the otter was not responding. Because, if the otter did not respond, then it was so much easier to think he wasn't listening at all.

"But, you know, I've been thinking lately about it's the things we love, or the things we need, that get us in the end." Root burrowed even deeper into the pillows, several of them falling over him. It was a miracle he could still talk loud enough to be heard, nearly completely covered with cushions. "Like our hearts. They keep us alive, but when they stop, we're dead. Or air. Our lungs. Our friends. You love them unconditionally and they kill you when you turn your back."

"Those that do that are not friends."

"Close as I'll ever get." The squirrel muttered resentfully. "What friends do I have?"

"The ferrets?"

"Only because I'm a squirrel in an army of vermin."

"Redsplash?"

Root snorted. "She only had one friend. That was all she has room for in that shriveled heart of hers. And he's dead. She's selfish and stupid and violent. How Fatefiend ever managed to befriend her, I don't know."

"The wildcat, then."

"Yes." Root laughed a tiny, bitter laugh. "Darkclaw. He'll never admit it, though. Probably kill me in the end just to prove he never cared. Stupid wildcat knows me from before and I can tell we used to get along. Sometimes he says things that don't make sense. Like he's talking to someone who would remember something, and has me confused with them. Once he asked me if I knew how to bring someone back from the dead, like he actually expected me to know. But I can't remember anything from before."

"From before what?"

"From before I can remember. You see, there's a certain point in my life when I just can't remember anything earlier. Used to think I was from some happy family, you know, and had just been dropped on my head when the foxes stole me, but now, I don't think so anymore. I mean, Darkclaw keeps saying he knows me, and there was that one squirrel in the forest…and then that crazy she-demon of a fox." There was a lengthy, tense pause. "I think…maybe I was evil." Root pushed the pillows off his eyes and looked to Sade. "If you…if you were evil in the past, does that mean you're evil now?"

Sade stared at him, considering what to say. In the end, he went with something as close to the truth as he thought was safe. "According to my tribe, creatures such as otters and squirrels and rats are incapable of change. If you are born evil, you will stay evil until you die. But our gods can change, and we continuously strive to become as gods."

"Anyone ever managed to change?"

Sade stiffened, but Root did not notice. "There is a differing of opinion in my tribe on that matter."

"Really?"

"Yes, but it is a long story and-"

"Tell me." Root turned bloodshot eyes towards Sade in a vaguely pleading way. "I want to know if we can change."

Sade didn't answer. He knew better than to speak of his tribe, or to speak at all when it was unnecessary. Those lessons had been rather easy to learn.

"Please?"

"No." It was a simple word, but not one he got to say often.

"Aw, come on Sadey, I wanna hear the story!"

Sade did not comment on the squirrel's mutation of his name. In fact, he did not comment at all, but simply straightened his already perfectly straight back and directed blue eyes once again at the entrance to the tent. After all, the squirrel, especially in his current condition, was no threat at all.

"Oh, bloody _fine_ then, bastard." Root sulked silently for a few minutes. "Sade…you wouldn't happen to have anything to drink, would you?" He asked suddenly in a particularly whiney voice.

Sade reached into his bag, which was propped up next to him, and tossed a flask to the squirrel, who didn't catch it quick enough and hissed when it thumped his chest. The otter listened as the squirrel struggled with the flask, attempting to open it with clumsy paws, and then listened to the squirrel gulp it down greedily.

"This isn't water." Root announced in surprise, his tone tinged with suspicion.

"No." Sade agreed. "It is not."

"Wha' is it?" Root asked, his eyelids dropping oddly, his green eyes panicked.

Sade's gaze locked on the squirrel's, and he blinked calmly. Root struggled for a moment before drooping, falling unconscious. His head lolled dully, and his breathing raced for a second and then slowed.

Sade nodded slightly and turned his gaze back on the entrance. The squirrel certainly wouldn't be asking any questions anytime soon.

…

"I leave for _ten_ minutes, and you _kill_ Root!" The deranged she-otter was yelling at him. Again.

"I didn't do _anything_!" Darkclaw objected, dead-tired and quickly growing aggravated, his ears flattening back against his skull in anger. He had not slept last night, far too concerned by this news of betrayal. He had wandered the camp, listened to the screams of Aysini's "Cleansing," grown bored and tired, and had arrived back here only to find the squirrel breathing so lightly he didn't appear to be breathing at all, sprawled on the cushions with a grim expression on his face. The other otter had been here too, of course, but he had been easy to overlook from his position in the corner.

"Oh, right, Root just died on his _own_, did he?" Redsplash bellowed, standing on the very tips of her toes to scream directly in his face. He fought back the urge to slash her face right off her skull, but only because he was tired. If he were not so tired…

"He is not dead." Sade spoke up emotionlessly. "He is asleep."

"How would _you_ know?" Redsplash demanded, whirling away from the wildcat and turning to face the otter, a scowl in her eyes.

"I know." He replied evenly.

Redsplash suddenly looked suspicious. "Did you knock him unconscious?"

"No."

"What's wrong with him?"

"Nothing."

"I'm going to sleep now." Darkclaw announced darkly.

Redsplash snorted. It was still midmorning. But, in the interest of more interesting things, she decided to ignore him. "What did you do to Root, Sade?"

"I did nothing." Sade replied blankly. "He came in, drank from a flask, and became unconscious."

Redsplash caught sight of the flask near Root and picked it up. It was amazing it hadn't tipped over. She looked at it dubiously. "Darkclaw-"

The wildcat snatched it grumpily from her paws, sniffed it cautiously, and then rolled his eyes. "Oh, clam down, otter, it's just a sedative." And upon revealing that piece of delicious information, he took a small swallow, carefully placed the cap back on the flask, and dropped it, staggered for a second, and then crumpled, asleep.

"You figure he would just lie down and wait like the rest of us." Redsplash growled resentfully, kicking at the wildcat for a second before turning to Sade, who had already placed the flask in his bag and was sitting there blankly.

"And don't you try to look innocent." Redsplash snapped at him, feeling oddly like a very harassed mother trying to keep up with three very rambunctious cubs. Sade turned his gaze on her, not reacting at all. "What did you do with that drink?"

Sade blinked up at her. "I put it where it could not be accidentally ingested by someone unaware of its effects."

Redsplash mouthed the words after he spoke them, eyes narrowed. Finally she grunted. "Right. Well, you make sure it stays there."

"I will." He answered impassively.

"Good." She glanced at Root and Darkclaw. Biting her lower lip, she seemed to be considering something. Her eyes snapped to Sade, and her teeth clenched viciously on her lip. Sade watched it all blankly, his mind analyzing everything.

"Stay here." She commanded. "And…and drink some of that…" She gestured with her paw, obviously distracted, and then walked out, visibly agitated by something.

Sade waited for a second, reached into his bag, and swallowed some of the mess in the flask before putting it back into the bag. Only the slightest bit of fatigue settled over him, and he could have ignored it easily. After all, he had been made immune to all the poisons and sedatives he carried a long time ago. But he had been commanded to stay here, quite clearly, and there was no point in being awake. The Carrier was not here to be guarded, and he didn't care at all for the squirrel or the wildcat. His body did need rest and, though he would usually not indulge it so, there was little else he could do right now. Resentfully, he let himself slip into dreams.

…

_Darkclaw was waiting for someone. He did not remember who and was not sure exactly if he had ever really known. For the first time in several seasons he was content knowing nothing and that, more than anything, made him realize he was not awake, or at least not himself. There was always the possibility he had been drugged or beaten over the head. Traveling with the company **he** had been keeping lately seemed to lend itself to those types of "accidents."_

"_I can't believe it's come to this." Complained a weary voice that seemed to echo across the plains Darkclaw stood knee-high in. "Seven seasons ago everything looked so **possible**."_

"_Who are you?" Darkclaw inquired calmly._

"_**That** is none of your business." The voice told him sharply. "All you need to know is that I am very annoyed with you."_

"_Is there any specific way this will interfere with my life?"_

"_Don't you try that!" The voice scolded fiercely. "You're stuck here until I'm through so you might as well listen!"_

"_If it is not important, than I would rather I get some sleep. This is a rather shallow state and I would rather-"_

"_**I am far past carrying what you would rather**!" The voice bellowed._

_Darkclaw blinked. "Remember to breathe." He suggested. "You seem to be in danger of passing out."_

_There were several long seconds when nothing could be heard. And then the voice spoke up, his tone venomous and bitter, "I need something form you."_

"_Oh, do you?" Darkclaw asked, his smirk on his face as well as in his tone._

"_Yes." The voice was grudging, almost openly antagonistic._

"_And whatever could you want from me? And, more importantly, what will you give **me** for my assistance?"_

"_That depends very much on if you accomplish the task."_

"_Obviously."_

"_I need you to keep the black otter alive."_

"_What?"_

"_Exactly as I said, wildcat. I need Sade to live."_

"_Is he in any particular danger of dying?" Darkclaw inquired, thinking about the otter. He was injured, it was true, but he did not seem the type to be easily killed. In fact, he seemed to be quite the opposite, much as it annoyed Darkclaw to admit it._

"_Yes. Far too early."_

"_For how long, exactly, am I supposed to keep the otter alive?"_

"_Until you reach the mountain."_

"_And, if I do this, what exactly will I be given?"_

_There was a brief, furious silence. "You'll need my help someday, wildcat, believe me. I'll save you when it comes to that…if only to keep you as far away from me as possible."_

_Darkclaw considered this. The idea that this was just a dream was dismissed almost immediately. The wildcat was well aware of what dreams felt like, and this was not a dream. So. Keep the otter alive…well, it made sense, didn't it? Sade's only purpose was to keep Redsplash alive and he could do a far better job of it than Darkclaw could these days, especially since the squirrel seemed to be slowly remembering who he really was. Besides, they couldn't be more than two days from the mountain. What trouble could the otter get into?_

_And besides that, if he failed and the otter died then he wasn't really losing anything. Redsplash would probably have another emotional tantrum but that hardly ever affected Darkclaw very much. And if he didn't fail, then his life might be saved someday. So this deal didn't really matter anyway. It seemed almost like a waste of his time._

"_I'll consider it. Let me sleep."_

"_**Consider**-"_

"_And your ruining my sleep won't help me decide in your favor, either, so I suggest you let go of my dreams. Now."_

_There was a growl and then a shift, and suddenly Darkclaw was dreaming as he was meant too._

…

"_Oy. Otter. Me and you need to have ourselves a talk."_

_Sade stared at the scowling ferret in front of him. He blinked. "Do we?"_

"_Yes. I may be banished because the mouse found out about my conversation with Red, but I can still talk to you and it's about time that I do." The ferret was not a threat. Harmless, really. He had no weapon and was lightly muscled. Sade was only vaguely interested and so he did not answer._

"_Don't think you can try that whole 'I'm-a-quiet-scary-demon-thing' on me, otter. I am **not** scared of you." _

_Sade glanced at him and found, to his surprise, that the ferret was telling the truth. Even the wildcat showed grudging unease around him, but this ferret was absolutely not afraid. In fact, if anything, he was furious and annoyed._

"_Yes, that's right, **not** afraid. I'm dead, so there is absolutely **nothing** you can do to me. Now, seeing as how I'm banished and everything, there really isn't anything **I** can do to you either, but the mouse will remember I'm here eventually and you just wait till he does. He's been hiding you from me for these past couples of your days, but I heard your thoughts floating around out here and if **that's** not disturbing I don't know what is. Here I am, banished, minding my own business, and your thoughts come floating out and **invade my personal space**!"_

_Sade decided the ferret was very much insane. _

"_I am not insane!" The ferret bellowed. "**Stop** projecting your thoughts out here!"_

"_What are you talking about?"_

"_Oh, don't you play innocent! Your whole **tribe** does it, but none of them go so far as to push them all the way out **here**! I can't even **sense **your emotions they're so far out there. It's **not healthy**! And I don't want you around Red! She's going to try to be like you and-and I won't allow it!"_

"_Why would the Carrier attempt to imitate-"_

"_Because she'll be sitting there and she'll think to herself, 'Oh, you know that Sade idiot doesn't seem bothered by **his** friends dying or by his ruining the world! I think I'll be like him so I don't feel bad anymore!' and then she'll try to be an emotional retard like you and **she does not deserve to be an emotional retard**!" The ferret was screaming now._

"_I suppose you have some kind of sentimental attachment to the Carrier."_

"_Don't call her that, you bastard. She's **my** friend and I'll be **damned **before I let you ruin her anymore than **I** got to!"_

_Sade blinked at him._

"_And I'm **not** jealous!" The ferret added suddenly. "Don't you even **think **about **thinking** that one, because **I'll**_ _hear it!"_

"_I thought nothing like that." Sade retorted, though he was certainly thinking it **now**._

"_Oh, shut up." The ferret snapped and then crossed his arms over his chest, scowled, and stomped around in a circle. "Look, otter, the mouse might have some grand design going on that he won't tell me about, and it **might** involve you living, but I don't want you around Red. You take that necklace and you run off somewhere."_

"_I cannot. It is against-"_

"_I don't **care**. You take it and you run back to your tribe with it or…"_

"_Or?"_

"_Or nothing, because I'm banished and dead, but you just wait until you die! I'll kill you **good**!"_

"_You will kill me…good…after I'm dead?" Sade inquired politely._

_The ferret scowled. "You know, just because I've withdrawn from Redsplash doesn't mean I won't haunt **you** for the rest of your life."_

"_Will you be carrying on like this for a while?"_

"_Nice try, but you can't wake yourself up until I'm done. I'm banished, but I can still hold you here."_

_Sade blinked and tried to rouse himself. Tired again. Failed. He turned cold eyes on the ferret. "Let me go."_

"_No."_

"_I'm guarding that otter of yours. Let me go."_

"_Oh, I know very **well** what you're doing! And if you were just guarding Redsplash, I'd have no problem with it! But you've got some strange concept of justice those psychotic **Elders** of yours forced down your throat and you've **convinced** yourself you've got to-"_

"_Silence." Sade commanded. "You cannot speak of them that way."_

"_Oh, I can't?" Fatefiend inquired, his tone mockingly civil. "And why not? Because if I say it aloud you'll realize you've been thinking it all this time?"_

_Sade jerked as if he'd been hit. "I…" He broke off and shook his head. "I have **not**!" He cried, emotions flashing across his face in startling succession for someone who had not showed an emotion for seasons now._

_Fatefiend glared at him, eyes cold. "Idiot otter, you can lie to yourself all you want, but you can't lie to me. I can **hear** your thoughts."_

"_You're lying." The otter accused. "I would **never think** **that**!"_

_Fatefiend suddenly frowned. "Oh, wait…what're…uh-oh." He looked up as if staring at someone. "What d'you **mean**, mental breakdown? Oh. **Oh**. Ummm…" Fatefiend's eyes traveled nervously to the otter who seemed to be shivering violently and clutching at his skull. "Uh, mousie? We might have a problem…"_

…

"_Rekth_!" The rat was terrified out of his wits, his eyes wide and his paws reaching insanely for the fox as Aysini's creatures held him back. "**_Rekth!_** **_Rekth_**!"

"What is this, Rekth?" Aysini demanded, furious. "It _interferes_!"

Rekth shrugged, unnerved and irritated. "I have no idea. That rat is not part of my army. He's Kani's."

"Kani's?" Aysini repeated, eyes narrowing with some half-formed suspicion.

"**_He killed him_**!" The rat screamed. "**_He killed Kani and he's crazy_**!"

Rekth and Aysini looked at each other and then, immediately, Aysini gestured for the rat to be released. He fell, scrambled in the dirt, and then was running towards Rekth, swerving away from Aysini as if she could steal his soul if he got too close. "_Rekth_!" He screamed. "_He won't stop_! _He killed Kani, and he keeps killing_!"

Rekth grabbed the rat by the shoulders and gave him several very violent shakes, causing the rat's skull to snap brutally around. Finally the rat was silenced and hung from Rekth's paws, dazed. "Now, rat," Rekth said, his voice very quiet. "What _exactly_ has happened?"

"Jus' killed Kani." The rat muttered tiredly, panting heavily. "Just…just cut his head right off. We went after 'em. Tried…tried to get him, but he's so _crazy_! An' he won't just _go away_. He keep standin' there, like he's waiting for something, and we can't stop him. He keeps killing us. An' I don't…we don't know how to stop him."

Rekth nodded and dropped the rat in the dirt. "I'm afraid, Aysini, that we must depart from the Cleansing." He told the other fox calmly.

She nodded, her golden eyes flaming. "Yes." She growled. "They do not need me anymore. My children know what to do."

"If you don't mind," Rekth said with a small smile, "I would very much like to stop by my tent to grab my scythe. I do not like the idea of investigating this unarmed."

Aysini nodded, her lips drawn back in a snarl as she hefted her axe. "I think, for once, we agree."

…

Rekth and Aysini stared at the figure for what seemed a very long time. The otter, they decided, was completely insane. He was completely silent and completely bloodstained. Corpses lay at his feet. So many, in fact, that they could not tell if Kani was even among them. They would just have to take the rat's word for it.

Kani's rats were in a curious state of terrified rage. They would charge the otter and be, somehow, beaten back, and then they would crowd together, screaming in anger and pain as they saw their comrades decorating the pile of corpses at the otter's feet. And they would hang back, scared and furious and so confused, and then, suddenly, one of them would lunge forward and the rest would follow, shrieking. And the otter would calmly wait until they got within range and then strike out at them, those two swords of his turning into twin blurs around a large, more vicious blur as he moved faster than even Rekth's well-trained eyes could follow, slicing and ripping and killing.

The rats were staying back now, swarming around Rekth and Aysini until Aysini, furious at being crowded, split one's skull open with her axe. And then the rats fell back even further, wailing and screaming and snarling and, in all, making fools of themselves. The otter stayed on top of the mound of corpses, his eyes traveling to Rekth and Aysini. A small smile lit upon his face and he wiped the blood from his eyes and mouth with a bloodstained sleeve before kneeling down to fish through the corpses, seeming to be searching. The two foxes watched impassively and then let out twin hisses of outrage as the otter came up with his prize: Kani's skull.

"Who _is_ this?" Rekth demanded, hefting his scythe and growled in carefully controlled outrage. "Who _is_ this demon?"

Aysini stared, her mind and memories working together to make strange conclusions no one would ever be able to understand. Finally she snarled and reached for the nearest rat, dragging the blubbering beast forward. "_Get me Redsplash_!" She screamed. "_Get me the **she-otter**_!" She threw the rat away from her and he crumpled in a heap on the ground. "**_NOW_**!" She bellowed and the rat lurched to his feet, scurrying off.

The otter looked to the two foxes, a mocking smile on his deranged face as he waved his twin swords invitingly.

Rekth stared back at him, an eyebrow raised in quiet challenge. "Someone get me some archers." He commanded. No one moved. He turned to the rats surrounding him, a scowl forming quickly on his face. "Someone get me archers _now_!" And five or six scurried off to find archers, forgetting completely that they were archers themselves.

Aysini and Rekth made eye contact and then turned back to the otter. The otter who threw Kani's head up and then swung the sword in his right paw like a bat and sent the head flying to smack into Rekth's chest.


	15. Chapter Fifteen

((So. I have a couple announcements:

1. This story will have a sequel. Yes. I'm turning the whole thing into a trilogy. Should be fun.

2. I've started writing a story about Fallen, and've already posted the first chapter. 's called Sprit Fading.

3. I will eventually write a story about Fatefiend, before he met Redsplash. No idea what it'll be called.

4. I got in a hurry, so I didn't edit this very well.

Yeah…that's pretty much all I have to say.))

…

Redsplash arrived on the scene still protesting the rat's insistent yanking on her arm. Then her eyes fell on Sade who appeared to be juggling several severed heads while standing atop a mountain of corpses. "Oh, _unholy **bastard of**_-" she turned to Aysini and Rekth. "_What did you do to him_?"

"We did nothing." The golden-eyed fox snapped, her axe tightly clutched in one paw. "The demon was set loose. What were you thinking, otter? Keeping a demon locked up behind a cage of _sentiments_?"

"_What_ are you _talking_ _about_?" She demanded. "You had to do _something_! What? What did you do? Call the Stone a pebble?"

"No. He broke. What did you say to him? What did you say that made him finally understand?" Aysini demanded.

"I said _nothing_!" Redsplash snapped. "He went to _sleep_!"

Aysini nodded slowly, staring into Redsplash's eyes with that disorienting stare. "Then we have no choice but to kill him." Aysini announced. "Execute him now, Rekth."

Rekth turned to the archers and was about to call out when Redsplash gave out a small shriek of fury. "**_No_**!" She bellowed. "You _can't_! Leave him **_alone_**!"

"Such protectiveness of a demon when you are not one yourself? Let him die, otter. Don't you understand that death is all that he has left?"

"_No_! You _can't have him_! He's _mine, _damn you! **_Mine_**! **_Mine_** to kill! _Not **yours**_!"

"Then kill him, otter. Let him die on _your_ blade. At least then he could justify himself to his nonexistent gods." Aysini snapped.

Redsplash's eyes flashed a furious red. "**_You can't have him_**!"

Aysini's golden eyes widened in surprise and she drew back slightly, the look of a creature who had finally seen something she had believed in all her life. "You? No. It cannot be you. It could _never_ be you."

"Aysini…" Rekth started uncertainly.

"He _must_ be exterminated." Aysini, the general, was arguing with a soldier. "He _cannot_ be allowed to kill more soldiers!"

"I can make him stop." Redsplash snapped, the red fading slightly. "I can make him play nice."

"He must die, otter. Either now by arrow or later after we've tortured the truth out of him. If you have any sentimental attachments to him, you would spare him the torture. Arrows are much kinder than knives." Aysini replied, her tone freakishly calm.

Redsplash considered. Considered. _He can't die_, she decided, _I need him to help bring down the badger. _"Why kill him after you know the truth? Give him back to me."

Aysini stared at him. "You are far too cold, otter, for one whose eyes run the warmest of colors."

"I won't let him die." Redsplash growled. "I need him."

"No." Aysini remarked, golden eyes disgusted. "You need his skills. You need his strength. If you needed _him_, otter, you would not want him to endure so much pain."

"We all feel pain, fox. Why should he have to feel any less than the rest of us?" Redsplash demanded, furious.

"Because that one has already suffered far more than you ever will." Aysini retorted and turned her back. "But you can have him once we know the truth, if he survives. Call your servant off, then."

Redsplash glared at the fox's back and then turned to stare at Sade. "_Oy_!" She bellowed. "Oy, **_Sade_**!"

Sade seemed to twitch oddly, as if someone struck him in the stomach with a hammer at the same time a frigid wind whipped past his neck. He turned towards her, blue eyes wide. It seemed oddly as if he was staring at his own grave. There was fury on his face and confusion as well, but it was mostly overwhelmed with dread. For Redsplash, who had never seen a real emotion on his face, it was a revelation.

"Look, Sade, I dunno what they said to you, but you've gotta calm down! Put the weaponry away!"

Sade stared at her with wide eyes that flashed with hopelessness and then slowly drained to his typical blankness. The bloody swords went back into their sheaths at his back and his head bowed, shoulders hunching.

"Do you _really _think that by taking his swords away you made him any less dangerous?" Aysini demanded, her entire expression screaming of insanity. "Order him not to fight back."

Redsplash glared at her, her lips drawing back in a snarl. She _hated_ the she-fox. For a second, the urge to lunge at her and rip her throat out became nearly impossible to fight.

"Redsplash." Darkclaw's voice, in her ear, quiet. "Get that lovely reddish tint _out_ of your eyes and think. I know it's hard for you, but it's rather necessary at the moment."

"_Wildcat_!" Redsplash bellowed turning on him and clenching her fists.

"Listen." The wildcat whispered furiously, his green eyes blazing over her shoulder at Aysini or possibly Rekth. "Get that little slave of yours to answer their questions and make sure you're there the _entire_ time he is. The foxes might decide he's too dangerous and execute him and if they _try_ that, you'll need to be there to order him to defend himself. _Don't_ let them kill him."

"Why do _you_ care?" She demanded, angry.

"Fail at this and I'll kill _you_. Understand?"

"Why do _you care_?" She bellowed but Darkclaw was already walking away, headed towards the remnants of Kani's army.

"Otter! Order the demon defenseless!" Aysini growled.

Redsplash, furious at the way things were going and at how she didn't understand _any_ of it, stalked over to Sade. "Don't fight them. _Any_ of them. Understand?"

He looked at her, blank and empty, and nodded. "Of course."

"Good. Let's go." And she grabbed his forearm and yanked him towards the foxes.

…

"Root." Darkclaw kicked the squirrel awake. "Something has happened. How loyal are those ferrets to you?"

"Pretty damn." Root murmured in a confident, cold voice that was not at all his own. Then he rolled over yawned, and blinked. "What's goin' on?" He asked in a tired, curious, half-whine that was far more fitting.

"Things I don't like." The wildcat snapped. "Tell those ferrets that Kani is dead, Rekth has converted to Aysini's corpse-mutilating religion, and all beasts in this army are now under Aysini's control."

"That's not…happy." Root observed, sitting up slowly and cradling his aching skull.

"Indeed not." Darkclaw rolled his eyes. "Fortunately for them all, _I'm_ far stronger than the she-fox and am instigating a rebellion."

"Good f'you, mate. Always knew you had it in ya." Root congratulated him, still holding his head.

"Yes. Tell those ferrets that unless they want to be enduring Aysini's Cleansing they'll have to join up with me."

"Won't they be killed if they join you and you're defeated?"

"I won't be defeated." Darkclaw snapped and then grinned. "And, besides, how is death worse than being tortured and buried alive?"

"Oh. Right. Forgot about that." Root nodded. "Wait…hold on…why am I helping you? Isn't that kinda like signin' up to die if you fail?"

"Kind of like it, yes."

"Oh. I'm on your side, then?"

"Yes."

"You on mine?"

"Not exactly."

"All right." Root said agreeably, standing up and swaying a bit. "Long as we've got that figured out."

"Good. Now. Go tell the ferrets and have the ferrets tell everyone else. I've already got the rats out working on it."

"'ow come the foxes haven't come to chop your head off yet?"

"Because they're busy interrogating Sade."

Root stared at him and then blinked several times. "I imagine that's where Redsplash is?"

"Yes."

"Good. She'd _better_ keep that one alive. I spent _way_ too much time healing him if he gets to die now."

…

Rekth and Aysini had led Redsplash, who was leading Sade, to a tent and then gone to stand outside the only entrance and argue loudly over the proper methods of torture. Redsplash, who had never been to Aysini's interrogation tent, was staring, open-mouthed in disbelief.

"Don't be afraid." Sade's voice, cold and distant, was loud in the silent tent. "They aren't going to torture you."

Redsplash turned back to him, frowning slightly and sighed. "Why did you kill the rat, Sade? Or, at least, why did you do it so _openly_?"

"I needed to be caught. I need to be killed. I cannot kill myself because I have not been shamed enough. But I am afraid of what I will do if I am allowed to live." He looked up from the ground, eyes tinged slightly with a question. "Would you kill me?"

"No. No, I can't. I need you to help me kill a badger."

"Ah." Sade's eyes went back to the floor. "Perhaps after that I can die."

"You're a strange one." Redsplash informed him as she went to examine a strange little instrument. "You wouldn't happen to know what this is, would you?"

"Pliers." He answered distantly. "Crush small bones, rip out claws, those are heavy enough to use to break bones, or to beat someone to death, though I doubt that death is their purpose."

"Huh. And this?" She pointed at another one.

"Choke pear. It goes into the mouth and metal spikes come out."

"Whoa. Ruins the whole thing, doesn't it? I mean, isn't torture supposed to make you _talk_?"

"Torture can be used for information or as a way to execute someone." He paused. "Also, for amusement."

"That's disturbing." She looked around again, still shocked by all the pretty little torture equipment that she'd never become familiar with. "What's the _purpose_ to all of this? I mean, pain, yes, but carrying all of this _around_? Wouldn't some needles, knives, and a bit of fire work?"

"Intimidation, Carrier. They think that by filling a room with sharp metal that they can scare me." A brief, tense silence. "They fail."

"You're just _odd_. _I'm_ not even in danger, and _I'm_ nervous." Redsplash snapped. "Here you are, about to be tortured and you don't care?"

Sade looked around slowly, coldly. Finally, he looked back to her. "I've seen worse, lived worse, and done worse. How can I be afraid?"

"Um, I dunno, by having the basic instinct to _avoid pain_?" Redsplash snapped back.

Sade's eyes filled with something. Some indescribable emotion that Redsplash had never felt and would never understand. His eyes dropped to the ground.

She walked forward, grabbed his chin, and jerked it up so she could look into his eyes, smirking at the emotion in them. "So you're not perfect…"

"No." He agreed, anger on his face and in his voice but not in his eyes. His eyes were far too bitter for anger. "And damn you all for ever asking me to be."

Redsplash stepped back, suddenly unsure of everything. Her brain seemed to be screaming, screaming something she couldn't quite comprehend. A voice echoed over and over, refusing to fall into a language she would understand.

It seemed to her that Fatefiend was trying to tell her something, trying, somehow, to speak to her while she was awake. It seemed terribly important. But all she could hear was him screaming something from a distance. She could not make out the words and, half a second later, they were gone.

Rekth and Aysini burst into the tent and Sade tensed, turning his blue eyes on them. "So, what's your name, mate?" Rekth inquired.

"I have no name." He replied.

"Sade, come on." Redsplash rolled her eyes. "_Answer_ the questions."

Sade glanced at her then back at the fox, tilting his head towards Redsplash just enough to show quite clearly that he was only going along with this to humor her. "My name is Sade."

"Is that your _real_ name?" Rekth demanded with a smirk.

"Is that really what you wanted to ask?" Sade retorted.

"Asking questions is bad for your health right now, mate." The male fox told him with a small little smile.

"Than I suggest you stop before you get hurt." Sade answered with a small little smile of his own that did not affect the emptiness in his eyes, making Redsplash shiver. It was like seeing a smile on a corpse.

"Was that a threat?" Rekth inquired calmly as he watched Aysini placing her axe carefully on a table large enough to hold a wildcat.

"Does it have to be?"

"Alright, mate, give up your weapons."

"You first." Sade replied blankly.

"Now." Aysini snapped and then turned to Redsplash. "Tell him to follow our orders."

"And give up my own power over him?" Redsplash demanded. "I don't think so."

"Do we have to torture _you_ as well?" Rekth inquired in a strangely friendly tone.

"I would not try it." Sade replied. "Because that would give me full rights to kill you."

"Order him to give up his weapons _now_, otter, or we'll torture him until he's dead." Aysini snapped.

Redsplash glared. She could give Sade the chance to kill the foxes. But then she'd lose the army, and she'd needed the army to keep the hares occupied while she killed the badger. So…"Sade, get rid of those weapons, will you?"

Sade strolled over the table Aysini had abandoned her axe on and began the long possess of divesting himself of his weapons. Before he was done, both Rekth and Redsplash were gaping in alarm. "How do you _walk_, mate?" Rekth demanded.

"The same way you do." Sade replied.

Redsplash's eyes were locked on Aysini, who had built a small fire and seemed to be heating a piece of metal in it. "So, I was thinkin', and tell me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't torture just be kind of useless? I mean, I can get him to tell you whatever you need to know, you've already promised not to kill him, and it requires energy to torture. Not to mention there's the whole screamin' bit that always gets on everybody's nerves, so, 'ow 'bout we skip the torture?"

"No." Aysini snapped.

"You must not know how fun it is." Rekth added.

"Why would I scream?" Sade inquired.

"Because it _hurts_." Redsplash was rather tired of the whole insanity side of Sade.

"Yes." Sade shrugged. "But we've all be hurt before."

"You're _insane_."

"Aren't you?"

"_Fine_! I don't care anymore! And what _exactly_ are you going to _do_ with that fire?" Redsplash was now yelling at Aysini who was still hovering over the fire.

"Do you know what cauterization is, otter?" Rekth inquired politely.

"Uuuh…_yes_!" Redsplash snapped. "But what're you gonna do? Cut off an ear and shove his head in the fire?"

"Paws, actually." Aysini broke in calmly. "He is not a danger to us if he cannot strike us."

"I have teeth." Sade pointed out in a conversational tone.

Rekth snorted. "We can pull those out."

"I'm not going to let you ruin him!" Redsplash raved. "I _need_ him to help me _kill_!"

Aysini snorted. "Well, then, I suppose our deal is off."

"An' don't think about orderin' him to kill us." Rekth moved freakishly quickly and had his scythe pulled back against her throat, just breaking the skin. "Because it'd really be a stupid thing to do."

"I _hate it_ when this happens." Redsplash complained.

Sade looked about ready to go psychotic again and kill everyone, when a bloodied ferret came running in. "Rekth!" He yelled. "We have a problem!"

"Yes. And we're dealing with it. Please leave." Rekth snapped.

"No! It's the wildcat! He's got everybody convinced you're going to sacrifice them because Aysini told you so!"

Rekth sighed and looked to Aysini, "Did you tell me to sacrifice anyone?"

"No."

"See?" Rekth turned his gaze back on the ferret. "Clearly, captain, it is a rumor."

"But the entire _army_ is comin' this way ready t'kill you!"

"Oh. _That's_ a problem." Rekth agreed, glancing uneasily at Sade. "Well…what're my soldiers doin'?"

"The five or so that decided to fight instead of betrayin' you? Gettin' executed for not goin' along with the wildcat! I managed to get away. Aysini's troops're distracted with that Cleaning thingy, but the wildcat is leavin' em alone anyway. Said if they got you two, Aysini's troops would be useless."

"A lie!" Aysini hissed. "They'd fight 'till they were all dead!"

"Yes, but I had to say _something_ to get them to follow me. And it wasn't even very hard." Darkclaw announced as he strolled in, both broadswords drawn and with Root, armed with a bow with an arrow already at the string, following along. "Kani's army was terrified of going to Aysini, and Devman's and Kislin' were easily persuaded. Most of your's, Rekth, came over quickly as well. Four armies against yours, Aysini? They would all die." Darkclaw smirked as he decapitated Rekth's captain. "Like that one."

Aysini reached for her axe, but Sade caught her by the throat and wrapped his arm around it, strangling her. "Calm down." The otter suggested.

"Let her go!" Rekth snapped. "Or I'll kill _this_ one." The scythe cut into her neck and Redsplash yelped a curse.

Sade faltered, his grip loosening and Aysini broke free, grabbing her axe, but backing away from Sade and the wildcat. Root pulled the string back and aimed at Aysini's heart.

"Idiots, please. Violence is not necessary." Darkclaw remarked in an annoyed tone. "I would rather you, Aysini, just take your troops and leave."

"What about Rekth?" She hissed, her golden eyes glancing towards the other fox.

"Him I have no use for." Darkclaw shrugged. "But he can go as well."

"You'd send trackers after me and kill me." Rekth growled. "Aysini has her army, but I would be alone. Easy prey."

Darkclaw blinked at him. "Is it my fault you failed to inspire fanatical loyalty in your troops?"

"I'd rather kill the otter and whoever else I can before being killed than be hunted down and executed." Rekth informed him with that mocking smile of his. "Less demeaning, you understand."

"You would come with me." Aysini announced suddenly.

Rekth glanced at her. "Gotten over you obscene hatred of me, have you?"

"I hardly think now is the time to discuss your relationship." Redsplash forced out, sounding muffled and choked. "But, by all means, go. I hope you'll be very happy together. Have lots of little psychotic children."

Rekth released Redsplash and moved almost too fast to follow to go and stand by Aysini, who gave him a quick nod of acknowledgement before tightening her grip on her axe. "How many archers are waiting outside to kill us?" She demanded.

"None. There's no one. They're all far too busy liberating whatever alcohol they can find. And, besides, I'd kill you myself if I wished you dead. But I don't. I would rather the Nameless One know of this than to just wonder what happened to his siege of Salamandastron. Gives me more glory."

"I will not go back to the Nameless One." Aysini snapped. "I stayed because I swore to go with the four generals. Three are dead and one has no army and thus is not a general. I am free from my oath and will go back to my freedom."

"Well, fine. I suppose the Nameless One will figure it out. He is astoundingly intelligent, I've heard."

"Indeed." Aysini looked at him and seemed to be considering. Finally, she nodded to him. "We are not enemies. Inadvertently or not, you have freed me from an oath I never intended to make and you have not harmed my army. If you had, I would have know of it, but you have not. So, Warheart, our families continue to mutually benefit from accidents."

Darkclaw blinked. "That would make you a daughter of Xalis, then, would it not?"  
She nodded to him. "It would. I wish you luck badger hunting. I understand they are particularly appetizing."

"If they're killed young enough." The wildcat agreed.

Aysini nodded. "Then perhaps I will meet you again, Warheart. May it be on better terms. I have always found your line to be particularly…entertaining."

"Indeed."

"Come then, Rekth." Aysini moved forward gracefully. "We have mutiny to commit."

"Do we?" Rekth asked politely as he followed along. "Death to the Nameless One, then?"

"No. Not that mutinous. We do not have enough troops for that."

"Oh, too bad. Was really looking forward to killing the bastard." Rekth lamented as they stepped into the brightness of midmorning.

"Perhaps someday." Aysini replied and they foxes were gone.

"Root remind me to tell the seven I ordered to follow and assassinate the two foxes that it is no longer necessary." Darkclaw ordered, turning green eyes on Root.

"But, why? What if they come back and-"

"They won't." Darkclaw told him confidentially. "She was of the Xalis line. Why she didn't mention this sooner, I do not know. Warhearts and those of the Xalis line do not betray each other."

"Why _not_? Everyone else betrays each other." Root pointed out.

"Because the Warhearts would not be alive if not for wolves, and Xalis was the only fox ever allowed to run with the wolves."

"Oh." Root rolled his eyes. "You Warhearts make no sense, did you know?"

Meanwhile, Sade was carefully bandaging the cut around Redsplash's neck. "It was not deep." He told her. "But it is still dangerous. Do not talk unless it is absolutely necessary."

"Here, lemme see that." Root shoved the otter out of the way. "_You_ can't even take care of yourself."

Sade stared at him, blue eyes narrowed slightly.

"Why'd you kill Kani, anyway? Seems a little extreme. I mean, he had bad breath an' all, but, _really_!" Root shook his head disapprovingly.

"I killed them all." Sade replied as he went to his weapons and began arming himself yet again. "Kani, Kislin, Devman. Devman destroyed a small village I was in and I wounded him before escaping from his troops. When I followed him here, I killed him as his murdering of the village beasts went against justice. After killing Devman, I realized Kislin was far too intelligent and killed him as well. Kani was a danger to the Carrier."

"Aw, he's insane too!" Root exclaimed in a falsely cheerful tone. "I surrounded by insanity!"

"Who's forgotten half their life?" Redsplash demanded and winced, apparently realizing why Sade had suggested she avoid talking.

"Over the line, Redsplash. That was over the line." Root snapped.

"I'm to take a nap." Redsplash announced suddenly.

Darkclaw glanced at her. "A nap?"

"I've had a traumatic experience. I plan to sleep it off."

"Mmm, good idea." Root agreed exuberantly. "Sleep it off."

Redsplash peered at him suspiciously. "Are you _ever_ sober?"

"Now what _exactly_ would be the point in that?" Root demanded. "Seems…" he shivered visibly, "uncomfortable."

"It is." Sade agreed.

Root gaped at him. "Is the emotionless wonder admitting to some kind of emotional preference?"

Sade's blue eyes narrowed and he looked at his paws, staring at the tattoos. "My name is Sade." He announced suddenly, lifting his chin and looking almost surprised at his own daring. "_Sade_."

"I think he's cracked, mate." Root whispered loudly to Darkclaw. "Ya might have to take care of that one."

"No!" Redsplash snapped. "Leave him alone!"

"And Red cares for her slave." Root shook his head. "Who needs to be sober when the world isn't?"

Redsplash glared. "Gonna go _sleep_!" She informed them all and stalked out, Sade following along in a listless sort of daze, a half-smile on his face.

"I swear everyone's crazy but me." Root muttered. "I _swear_ it."

…

Redsplash was halfway settled on Root's large mountain of pillows when Sade entered in the tent. Immediately he froze, sniffing at the air and getting the strangest expression on his face. His eyes and face were completely blank again as he went around the tent, eyes narrowed and constantly moving. Finally he kneeled on the ground right outside the tent, staring at the sand for a minute before lunging to his feet and sprinting off, leaving Redsplash behind.

Root wandered in half a second later. "What was _that_?"

"_I_ have no idea!" Redsplash snapped. "He's crazy!"

"Right." Root nodded. "And you're not?"

Redsplash pointedly closed her eyes and pretended to go to sleep.

"Oy! You're on _my_ pillows!"

"_I'm_ wounded."

"'s no excuse! Get _off_!"

"No!"

…

Fallen was an hour's walk away from the vermin camp when he heard footsteps behind him. Fast footsteps. Light footsteps. Someone with training. The kind of training he'd gotten long ago.

He whipped to the right and whirled around quickly to face whoever was chasing him, only to see a black blur flying towards him. Fallen barely had time to realize how well trained this creature must _be_ to react so quickly, when his own training took over and he grabbed the flying beast, attempting to use his attacker's own momentum against him and catapult him into a tree.

There was a moment of what seemed to be the attacker's surprise and then, somehow, the attacker slipped out of the hold, landing lightly on his feet far out of reaching distance. Blue eyes burned with blankness and two swords came hissing out of their sheaths and were flying at his neck.

Fallen's own sword was out and defending him in the half second it took for him to realize what was happening. Metal screamed and flickered and Fallen realized he couldn't win this fight. Not, at least, while the other otter had the advantage of two swords.

He lunged backwards and felt his back connect with a tree. A quick, frenzied, glance upwards revealed a branch _just_ low enough that he could grab it. He threw his sword and the other creature dodged, giving Fallen the second he needed to lunge into the tree, climb upwards hurriedly, and grab his bow, take an arrow out of his quiver, and aim it at the creature below him.

Only to find the other otter was doing the exact same thing to him, his swords magically back in their sheaths.

"What do you want?" Fallen demanded, struck by an odd sense of familiarity.

"What were you doing in a vermin camp?" The otter demanded, his voice harsh. "What were you looking for?"

"Nothing you need to know about." He retorted. "And nothing I will tell you."

"If you do not tell me what you were doing, I will kill you."

"I would kill you first."

"Doubtful. Judging from out previous skirmish, we would probably kill each other at around the same time."

"Probably." Fallen agreed.

The otter nodded. "So, I will ask you one more time before taking my chances." He paused, almost as if he were considering something particularly upsetting, before continuing. "What were you doing?"

"How did you know I was there?" Fallen inquired.

"Because you used tricks I was taught before I learned to speak. Obviously you did not expect me to be here which either means you were just looking for something to steal," he studied him briefly, "unlikely. Or you were looking for one of the other three in the tent. A wildcat, a squirrel, and a mouse."

Fallen snorted. "What was that? A trick? A mouse? In the company of a Warheart wildcat? It is an otter, her name is Redsplash, I am tracking her to kill her, and if you value your _own_ life, I suggest you leave the otter now. Because I won't hesitate like this again."

Two arrows flew at the same time and two otters dodged exactly the same way. Their training failed them.

Fallen felt the arrow pierce his shoulder and fell back to his flight instinct, allowing himself to run back to the relative safety of the mountain. He did not hear anyone pursuing him but that meant absolutely nothing. He knew anyone with the kind of training it took to be that fast and track him this far could be as silent as they wished to be.

…

For a while, Sade was thoroughly incapacitated. The arrow had simply grazed his neck and he had bandaged that rather easily, but his many and various other wounds had all decided now was a lovely time to act up. Besides that, his blood seemed to have had a conference and decided the only way to lead a full and healthy life was to abandon Sade's body as fast as possible.

Typically, this would have been a minor inconvenience. But ever since that idiot ferret had…had _talked_, he'd had a hard time concentrating on anything, as if his brain itself was avoiding thinking. And now, now that he lay bleeding on the forest floor, his brain seemed to have decided it was the _perfect_ time to reevaluate his current situation and come up with something he'd never had to deal with before: **_opinions_**.

…

"_Sade? Why don't you laugh anymore?"_

"_I am not allowed to."_

…

"_Sade?"_

"_Yes?"_

"_How long have you known that I was not your real father?"_

"_I have always known."_

"_Who told you?"_

"_Childhood enemies with connections to the Elders."_

"_What did they tell you?"_

"_That I am a demon and that I will destroy the world."_

"_Do you believe them?"_

"_I believe nothing my peers say to me. They are foolish and afraid of dying."_

"_Are you?"_

"_No. Should I be?"_

"_Most your age fear death."_

"_Death has never worried me. Life is far more dangerous."_

…

"_Why are you bleeding so much?"_

"_I forgot the laws."_

…

"_I do not think we should trust him. His father-"_

"_Was his father. They are completely different creatures. We kept this one under strict watch. He is completely loyal to us."_

"_You know what **she** says about it."_

"_What? That you can never completely break someone to a system when they are as young as he is? She is insane and senile. It will work."_

"_But what if it fails?"_

"_Hopefully Havoak will be back by then. He will authorize his execution."_

"_Are you sure? They were very close."_

"_If we fail, Havoak will have him killed for his own good. Minds break.."_

…

"_Sade? Sade why don't you smile anymore?"_

"_I've forgotten how."_

…

"_What do you know of your father?"_

"_That he was a disgrace and a runaway. The only creature to successfully elude us for as many seasons as he did."_

"_You say 'us.' You do not count yourself on his side?"_

"_He betrayed us. Blood relation means nothing to me."_

"_And what does your mother say of him?"_

"_She will not speak of him. She fears to. Have you threatened her?"_

"_Yes. Does that anger you?"_

"_Why would it? She is just my mother."_

"_Some would be angered."_

"_Some would thank their mothers for being born."_

"_You would not?"_

"_I would not."_

"_Does it not anger you that they killed your father?"_

"_No. He had to die. He was a betrayer."_

"_Do you know how they killed him?"_

"_There is only one way to execute a traitor. I know it."_

"_And do you know how long he lasted?"_

"_Seventeen days. The longest anyone ever has."_

"_Do you know why he betrayed us?"_

"_The Elders killed his children. The first born son and the third born daughter, who, by tradition, were to be the fighters. The two were offered up as sacrifices to the Justice Goddess. Then I, the only surviving sibling, was taken from my father's house to be a warrior. He had not expected any of this and claimed the Elders had betrayed him. He left, taking the Stone with him."_

"_Do you know that, if he had not left you behind, the Stone would belong to you?"_

"_Yes."_

"_You would have never had to gone through those last phases of your training. It is your father's betrayal you have to blame for all those intricate scars of yours. The Stone would rightfully have been yours."_

…

"_Where are you going, Sade?"_

"_Somewhere far from here, Dwynwen. I may never come back."_

"_You're as bad as Havoak! Why does everyone go away and leave me here?"_

"_Because there is nothing else to do."_

"_I hate you!"_

…

"Redsplash…it occurs to me that someone is missing." Root murmured, yawning.

A pause as the otter yawned back and shifted on her half of the pillow mountain which they had divided down the center. "I _told_ you. Darkclaw's off being all evil genius-like with those captains of his."

"No…someone bleedy."

"'Bleedy?'" Redsplash demanded incredulously. "_Oh_! **_Sade_**! Damn! Where'd he go?"

"I vaguely remember some kind of psychotic otter running past me in a…northsouthern direction?"

"'Northsouthern?' Was he spinnin' in circles, Root?" Redsplash inquired, smirking.

"Look, Red. Just be glad I'm reasonably _coherent_, alright?"

"It's Red**_splash_**, Root."

"Whatever you tell that sick mind of yours, Red_splash_."

Redsplash stood up slowly, swayed dangerously, and yawned again, nearly falling over. She kicked Root in the ribs. "Get up. We're gonna go lookin' for Sade."

"Why does everyone involve _me_?" Root demanded. "Why does everyone _always_ involve _me_?"

"Because you don't have anything else to do. Get up."

"I hate you." Root announced as he stood up wearily. "_And_ your mother."

"I'll tell Sade you said that."

"Oh, no. You can't go attackin' me through him anymore. _Specially_ not if I'm goin' through all this trouble findin' him."

"What trouble? You're still half-asleep."

"D'_you_ know how to track?"

Redsplash hesitated and went to stand outside the tent, peering down at what appeared to be billions of footsteps. "No…" She admitted as Root came up beside her.

"Well _I_ do, and I'm not helpin' unless _you_ promise never to order Sade to hit me over the head again. Because it _hurts_, and my head hasn't been in the best condition lately anyway."

"Aw, you were stupid to begin with." Redsplash snapped. "But fine, I won't tell Sade to hit you anymore."

"Good."

…

It was a strange thing, peace. Here he was wounded and battered, and he was finally at peace. He'd never known peace before. Like so many things, he'd never had a reason or a chance too. But…it was…was indescribable, because he'd never learned the proper adjectives. Who taught warriors how to feel peace?

If this was death, he should have died a long time ago.

"I _told_ you I'd find him!" A voice. Recognizable. Not a threat. _Go back to sleep._

"I didn't say you _wouldn't_, did I?"

"No! But some comments were made that I'd like taken back!"

"If this is about the whole thing about the pineapple…"

"It was _hurtful_!"

"Look, Root, just help me pick him up, alright?"

"Are you joking? _No_! Not until you apologize!"

"I'm _not_ apologizing! Look at all this blood! _Look_!"

"**_Throwing_** his blood at my _eyes_ is not helping your case!"

"No. But it was fun."

"I'm gonna _kill_ you."

Threat. To the Carrier. **_Wake up._**

Sade sat up quickly and, seeing Root crouched beside him staring at him curiously, slammed his forehead into Root's skull. The squirrel fell over backwards and let out a brief scream of anger. "_You said_ you wouldn't let him hit me in the head anymore! _You **said**_!" He cried.

"I did not. I said I wouldn't _tell_ him to. That was completely his own decision." Redsplash smirked. "Not that I minded, of course."

"Oh, of _course_ not." Root snapped moodily. "I suppose you'll still expect me to help you carry him back to camp?"

"You wouldn't leave a wounded otter out here to die, would you?"

"Only if it was you." Root muttered poisonously. "And _don't_ hit me again, Sade!" He added as he scrambled backwards, barely avoiding Sade's kick that would have broken his nose.

"Really, Sade. We're gonna need him to get you back to the camp." Redsplash remarked in a mildly reproachful tone. "Tell me…did the shrubbery attack you?"

Sade hesitated, clearing his thoughts, killing the strange murmurs in the back of his mind. Everything turned blank and cold again. "An otter is tracking you and plans to kill you."

"Someone wants to kill _Red_?" Root gasped, mockingly shocked. "My goodness! **_Why_**?"

Redsplash looked at him and an eyebrow arched upward. "When someone finally kills you, I will spit on your corpse."

Root looked to Sade. "Isn't she charming? I mean, who would ever want to kill such an innocent, friendly, morally righteous creature? She's the very picture of perfection!"

"Root?" Redsplash inquired, in a dangerously polite voice. "I never promised not to have Sade slice your tongue out."

Root rolled his eyes and grabbed Sade's arm, pulling. The otter eyed him with a doubtful expression that seemed to hint at some kind of sarcastic mockery. He was _definitely_ not moving. "Get _up_, mate. If we don't get back soon I'll miss out on the festivities." Root informed him in a vaguely pleading tone. "Come on. _Please_?"

"You can leave me here." Sade informed him calmly. "I will most likely survive the walk back."

"Did I _ask_ you to be difficult?" Root demanded, offended. "No! All I want to do is get you and the _other_ idiot back to the camp where you'll be safe and _then_ I want to go get so **_completely_** drunk that I think I'm dyin' again."

Redsplash's eyes lit up. "Y'know, squirrel," she drawled, "sometimes I really like the way you think."

Root glanced at her. "Oh, great. I can see this gettin' real ugly real fast."

…

"You were born fat. You'll die fat. Only the maggots'll love _you_."

"Might as well be loved by something." A pause. "You're ugly."

"_You're_ callin' _me_, ugly? When was the last time you looked in a mirror, squirrel? Or has your reflection committed suicide yet?"

"Only, because it caught sight of _you_."

Sade wondered how long the two could insult each other. They were quite adept at it. Only…something seemed off. The squirrel seemed nervous, edgy, and the otter almost irritated and distracted. And every now and then they would pause, as if waiting. Waiting for what, though? Perhaps there was supposed to be someone else. Someone else to answer. Someone missing.

"You sure you're fine, Sade?" Root inquired suddenly.

Sade froze and ran a mental check of all the wounds that could currently be a problem. "Yes."

"Not something a good kick to the back of the head wouldn't cure anyway." Redsplash observed cheerfully.

Sade turned his head to look down at her. "Death?"

"_Sleep_." Redsplash snapped. "How insane do you idiots think I _am_? I spend all this energy making sure you _live_ and you think I'm going to _kill_ you?"

"With all due respect, Redsplash, you've done stranger things." Root pointed out. "And by 'all due respect' I mean as disrespectfully as is possible."

"Root, has anyone ever shown you exactly what a choke pear is used for?" Redsplash inquired calmly.

"Uhh…." Root glanced around nervously. "No…"

Redsplash's grin was the very embodiment of evil. "Good."

Sade froze and reached for the two swords on his back, but relaxed almost as quickly when seven vermin appeared from the foliage.

Redsplash, however, was not as calm. "Who're _you_?" She demanded.

"The general sent us off to find you three." A weasel informed them. "Says he's tired of you three jus' gallivantin' off whenever you please and somethin' else about eatin' someone's relatives."

"That'll be Darkclaw." Redsplash sighed. "I suppose he has proper control of the army by now, does he?"

The weasel nodded. "He does."

"And I suppose he said if we didn't come back willingly you were to _take_ us back?" Redsplash inquired.

The weasel frowned. "Maybe…"

"And I don't suppose he was stupid enough to just send seven, so…Sade? Where are they?" Redsplash turned to the black otter.

"All around us. There's at least thirty and most of them are archers."

"Lovely." Redsplash commented dryly. "He is, of course, still planning on attacking the badger?"

The weasel hesitated, uneasy. "'s what he said."

"Well then I have absolutely no reason not to go back. Do you, Root?"

"Besides that I'm marching to a war I have no part in, can't leave, and wouldn't have anywhere to go if I did?" Root inquired, his tone bitterly upbeat. "Why, no!"

No one asked Sade. But, then, Sade wasn't at all sure he could have replied all right now, since logic and the tiny whisperers in the back of his mind had finally gone to war.

…

"Are you going to tell us where you got this arrow from?"

Hares. They never did quite know when to shut up. "No."

"Are you going to tell _me_ where you got the arrow?"

Badgers. Never really _had_ to shut up, considering they were bigger than just about everybody else. "No."

Just because they were bigger didn't mean he couldn't kill them just as easily. A slashed throat, a pierced heart, a broken skull…

"Would you at least tell me how you got out of my mountain?"

Suppose he ought to. "I climbed out the center and down."

"I've seen hares who've lived in this mountain all their lives break their necks just _attempting_ what you say you've done."

Salamandastron Badger Lords. So arrogant and powerful. They know the future, so they think no one else can guess. "It was the quickest way out."

"And where, exactly did you go?"

"I told you I came here to kill."

"And did you get to your prey?"

"No." A guard from one of _their_ tribe. A half-tested warrior that bore a startling resemblance to-

"Then who gave you the arrow?"

"No one of any consequence."

"Right. An' me grandmum was a duck."

"Explains the facial features." Strange creatures, hares. Never quite _can_ tell what they're thinking.

…

Darkclaw was out plotting world domination or something equal as foolish. Root was out getting very very drunk. Sade was bandaged and seemed content to sit, propped up on pillows, staring at the tent entrance, and Redsplash was watching him, coldly curious.

"You're allowing yourself the use of pillows?" Redsplash demanded suddenly, murdering the silence. "Won't it ruin your posture?"

"There are cuts on my back I must allow to close." He informed her. "And, to do so, I cannot strain the muscles."

"Oh, too bad." She mocked, feeling herself falling back to the cold shell she'd been hiding behind lately. "Poor thing's in pain."

"Yes." He agreed. "But pain can always be ignored."

She stared at him, eyes narrowed. "You know, Sade, Darkclaw just might not care and Root maybe to drunk to notice, but I know something happened. You weren't like this a day ago. You didn't _feel_ back then."

"I do not feel now." He informed her.

"I saw emotions in your eyes." She snapped. "I _know_ you can feel."

"I can, but why would I wish to? Emotions are idiotic things that interfere with your judgment." He blinked blue eyes closed and paused before opening them again. "Besides, I have lived most of my life without feeling a thing. The problem with feeling something now is that I would have to feel everything I have blocked out first. I lost control this morning, and I do not wish lose control again."

"So, what? What're you going to do? You can't go on like that forever."

"I don't plan to. My plan is to die at the mountain." He turned to look at her. "You only need me to help you kill the badger, correct?"

She stared. It sounded heartlessly cruel when he said it. Did she _really_ intend to just use another living creature like that? Was there _no_ line she wouldn't cross. "Yes. I only need you to help me kill the badger."

Apparently not. It was a strangely liberating moment when she realized she had no morals left to heed. Strange in that it felt more painful than joyful.

"Then, if I do not die in the battle, would you kill me afterwards?" His tone was calm, blank.

"You want me to kill you?"

"I want nothing. It is simply necessary. My training has failed. I am broken and would not be able to keep logic and emotion separate for longer than twenty days. I cannot be sure what will happen if I lose control again, so for your own safety I must ask that you kill me after the badger is dead."

"Can't you do it yourself?"

"Not honorably. If I cannot die honorably than I cannot allow myself to die at all."

Redsplash wanted to refuse. Killing was all well and good, but this seemed too much like…like throwing away a broken toy. Only, it wasn't just some toy she would be throwing away, it would be a **_life_**.

But…life had stopped meaning anything to her the second Fatefiend lost his.

"Sure, Sade. I'll kill you."

…

"_Sade? Sade why don't you smile anymore?"_

"_I've forgotten how."_


	16. Chapter Sixteen

((I know! I know! I took forever! I'm sorry!

Good/bad news, though. There's two more chapters left in this story. Then the third (and final, I _swear_) story will come along. It might take a couple months, though. I need to get Spirit Fading out of the queasy "before everything happens" phase it's in. It's really annoying right now. Not to mention I've got to come up with a title for the third story. I hate titles. I'm not any good at them, and I always have to have the **_right_** one.))

…

_Screaming in the darkness._ _Furious wails shattered the silence like a fist through glass._

_The shards of broken silence pierced his flesh and he cringed._

"_I hate you!"_

"_Do you know why he betrayed us?"_

"_You never smile."_

"_Sade? Sade why don't you smile anymore?"_

"_Sade? Why don't you laugh anymore?"_

"_You never smile."_

_Voices. Clamoring for his attention, all speaking at once. He tried to concentrate on them, but his mind felt numb, dead. The words flew at him like arrows and the screams continued._

"_You don't question anything. You just kill whoever you think needs killing and call it a good day."_

"_Oh, don't you play innocent! Your whole **tribe** does it, but none of them go so far as to push them all the way out **here**! I can't even **sense **your emotions they're so far out there. It's **not healthy**!_

"_And why not?_ _Because if I say it aloud you'll realize you've been thinking it all this time?"_

"_What is your name?"_

"_And why not?_ _Because if I say it aloud you'll realize you've been thinking it all this time?"_

"_What is your name?"_

"_And why not?_ _Because if I say it aloud you'll realize you've been thinking it all this time?"_

"_What is your name?"_

"_What is your name?"_

"_What is your-"_

Sade sat up, his breathing viciously controlled to keep from gasping unnecessarily. Was he really awake? He needed to know and didn't. The terror of his training failing hit him full force and suddenly he **_had_** to know if he was dreaming or not.

The dagger was in his paw and slicing open his forearm in an instant. The pain struck viciously, and the tension left him. He was awake, then.

Good.

Automatically, he bandaged the cut and looked around him, seeing more in the darkness than most could. Despite his mind beginning to reject the training, his body was still used to the skills he had attained and refused to let them slip.

There were two other creatures in the tent. Root and Redsplash. The wildcat had taken a general's tent and moved the squirrel and the otter into a tent guarded by fifteen creatures, all heavily armed. Sade had already killed five of them to illustrate his feelings on the matter, and knew he would kill five more before allowing himself to sleep again.

It was strange, this new interest in killing. Before, he had never wanted to kill. It had just been what he had to do. As necessary as breathing. But now…now that some kind of moral inkling of the guilt of all those murders and started trickling into his mind, he found the ease of it appealing.

An irreplaceable part of the world, good, bad, neutral, or some combination of all three, was gone. And he had killed it. It was some strange emotion in him now, one that he could not place, having listened to hundreds of others describe to him how they 'felt.' Some combination of revenge, guilt, and…perhaps amusement?

Maybe.

But then, he would never really understand. He planned on dying before he had the chance too.

…

"Are you alright, otter?" Strange, that question. The truth was never acceptable. Of course he wasn't alright. He'd gone numb on the inside. He couldn't feel anymore. A strange feeling of screaming and screaming and never making a sound had pulled him, choking, from his nightmares and had yet to fade away.

"Always." The expected answer. The acceptable one. The only one he dared now to speak.

"You cannot always be alright." A laugh hidden in the words. He was being mocked. Fallen bit back the scream that tried to rise up in him. There would be no point in losing control. "You have to be happy, sometimes, and sad. If it were possible to be one thing at any time, we'd be nothing all the time."

"Don't speak your riddles to _me_, badger." A quiet, thoughtful tone when he wanted to snarl. "I long ago grew tired of riddles."

"Life is a riddle."

"Who hasn't grown tired of living?" Fallen retorted and turned away from the arrow slit that allowed him a tiny view of the sky, crossing his arms over his chest, despite the pain that shrieked from his injured arm.

"I haven't." Advigilian answered, his eyes staring out at the sky with a look of patient anxiety. Almost as if he knew he was going to die and knew he could do nothing to stop it. "I was, I suppose, but the closer I come to death the more I want to escape it."

Numbness. Creeping from his heart to infect his mind. Did he even care if he died? If that black otter came along and ripped his guts out with a fishing hook, would he even care enough to acknowledge the injustice of it? "If you do not want to die, why do you stay here?"

"Because it is my duty to die here." Advigilian shrugged. "The hares must leave, but I must stay. My ancestors won't be appeased until they see my skull stuck on the ferret's castle walls."

"And what have you done to your ancestors that requires your death as atonement?" Numb to everything. Why could he not feel?

"Nothing." Advigilian laughed. "I was never what they wanted me to be. When I was supposed to be killing, I was always granting mercy. When I was supposed to be merciful, I was always killing." He looked down at the floor, a troubled look on his face. "I had the chance to kill the Nameless One once."

A streak of shock stabbed through him and he held to it as long as it lasted. A bolt of lightening to the shield of numbness, and both cracked in their own way. "What?"

"He came through here back when his band was small, and his reputation was little more than whispers of a small village or two entirely annihilated. My hares and I killed all of his followers. Him, though…" Advigilian shook his head. "If you have ever seen the Nameless One, or even heard him speak, you'd understand why I let him go. I had too much respect for life, I suppose, but executing him seemed like it would be such a waste. He was the type destined to be great. Do you understand? It was not clear, even then, if he would be evil or good, but whatever he chose he would be _great_, and I was still foolish enough to believe that good would always triumph. I gambled on right, and I was betrayed. There is no good in vermin, otter. They have no souls."

"Then who does?" Fallen demanded, bitter in a distant, detached sort of way. "If the ones we battle have no souls, then do we? And if they _do_ have no souls, than they can't help how they are. It's like killing a bird for flying. If we believe that vermin have no souls, and we kill them for the things they do, then we have to admit we're tarnishing our own. Perhaps ruining them completely."

"Then _admit_ it otter. Because if you don't, you'll hesitate someday. You'll have the opportunity to save the world from a curse, and you won't do it. We _have_ to kill them, Fallen. Because if we don't, their actions become _our_ responsibility. Every life that ferret claimed or broke or harmed since I let him go isn't his fault. It was just his nature. It's _my_ fault because I had the chance to kill him, and I _didn't take it_."

A deep breath. The expected words again. Just enough sympathy to sound sincere. "You can hardly blame yourself."

The badger turned on him with a snarl and the otter realized, vaguely, why most called it madness to challenge a badger. They were terrifying creatures when angry. "It **_is my fault_**!" The badger roared. Fallen's eyes narrowed slightly, and he wondered if the badger would really fight him. It would be, if nothing else, very interesting. But Advigilian sighed and looked away. "I've settled with that a very long time ago, otter. I don't need someone to tell me something I know isn't true."

"Then why do you still rage?" Fallen demanded, looking down the long hallway and wondering, if he ran fast enough, could he run back to the time when he, too, let his chance to kill the Nameless One fall away.

Advigilian frowned, his eyes echoing of past pain. "I knew he would come here eventually." Advigilian muttered, so quiet Fallen could barely hear him. "I just always thought he would come _himself_. I expected no mercy, but I _did_ expect him to respect me enough to come watch me die instead of hearing about it from his little messengers. Death has never seemed so useless as it does now."

"Useless?" That seemed the strangest way to describe death.

"Yes. Useless. Pointless. Futile. Pathetic. It is a shame that this mountain will fall to vermin, but it has always been destined too."

"How could you know?"

"We badger lords of Salamandastron have always been acquainted with the future. But in the hundreds of seasons we have ruled here, that knowledge has never given us joy."

Fallen stared and him and then looked away. "I don't suppose the future would be any happier than the present, and I don't suppose anyone should ever expect it to be."

Advigilian stared at him for a second and then, suddenly, laughed. The annoyingly amused badger was back, and the bitterly thoughtful one was banished. "A little cynical, aren't we?"

Fallen's eyes snapped to his. "I hardly think it's a laughing matter. In fact it seems a rather serious matter to me."

"Who has time to be serious when there is so much to laugh at?" Advigilian retorted. "Might as well die laughing. Seems like it would be more pleasant than to die crying."

"You need to get more sleep, badger. You're talking nonsense."

"Oh, don't you dare condescend to _me_, otter. I was damning the world for once and for eternity before _you_ were born!"

"Yes. You'd think you'd have learned something by now."

…

Darkclaw scowled at the mountain. The army was about two miles back, still relatively out of sight and commanded to stay that way. The element of surprise was rather wasted, as the badger had been warned, but Darkclaw preferred _not_ to have a bunch of confused idiots blundering around. He'd have to have a word with them, of course, but he'd wanted to get them to the mountain first. He'd needed to think of what exactly he was going to say.

"You asked for me?" Sade. Ah, yes. _That_ one.

"Yes. Did you bring your master?"

"She's asleep."

"Had too much to drink last night?"

"I believe her and the squirrel got into a competition." Sade answered. "What do you want?"

"We have some hostages." Darkclaw told him, gesturing over his shoulder at the army. "Random beasts they grabbed on their march here. There's no use to having them, so I want you to kill them."

"You want me to execute them?"

"Yes."

"Is there any specific purpose?"

"Not really. I just don't want to feed them. And from the mess you left of those guards, I've gathered you have no qualms about killing the defenseless."

"They had weapons."

Darkclaw laughed and raised an eyebrow. "So you'll justify it like the hares and otters do, will you? They had weapons, so it was a fair fight?"

Sade blinked suddenly, and seemed to shiver without moving at all. "I justify nothing. They had weapons, and so were not defenseless. Had they been weaponless, I still would have killed them."

"Why?"

"Why not?"

Darkclaw shook his head, smiling softly. "Kill the hostages, otter."

"Of course." Sade's eyes narrowed at the mountain, ignoring the slightly surprised look on the wildcat's face. "I suppose you want me to kill them in view of those in the mountain?"

"Obviously. And don't kill them all at once."

"Obviously." Sade replied in exactly the same dismissive tone Darkclaw had just used on him.

…

"What're you doing?" Redsplash scowled at Sade, eyes narrowed.

"Preparing to execute defenseless beasts." Sade replied distantly, looking at her blankly. "Is that not something you wanted me to do?"

"Not particularly, no. You're _supposed_ to be guarding _me_."

"I imagine if I had refused Darkclaw he would have manipulated the situation until a substantial death threat was placed against you and you were forced to order me to kill them. It was more efficient if I simply followed his orders when they were issued." Sade wasn't even looking at her anymore as he went about cleaning the skinning knife he'd pulled out of his pack.

"What happens if I get attacked?"

"An entire army would descend upon the attacker and kill them." Sade informed her. "Darkclaw's already ordered the entire army to watch you."

"He's **_what_**?"

"Ordered the army to keep you from harm." Sade glanced at her. "Isn't safety what you wanted?"

"Yes, but not to be treated like a _child_! I can take care of myself!"

"Then why was my protection required?"

Redsplash glared at him. "Because it _was_!" She bellowed. "But **_fine_**, play your little killing games! And **_if_** I die, I _order_ you to **_live forever_**!" She stalked off, and Sade stared after her, some disgusting emotion slithering across his consciousness. She had no idea what she'd just sentenced him too.

…

"_What_ are those idiots doing?"

Advigilian turned to glare at the hare who had spoken. "Get back to work!" He snapped. "We need to get the children out before we're surrounded."

"I don't like this idea." Fallen admitted. "I don't think the group will make it to Redwall."

Advigilian scowled. "I've done all _I_ can do for them. I've sent all the adults that I can persuade to go, and the elderly hares aren't near as weak as I made them think they were. If it comes to a fight, some of them would survive."

Fallen shook his head. "I don't like it."

"You think I _do_? I don't have a choice! I ran out of time!"

Fallen watched the hares scurrying past. "They're taking too much food." He pointed out blandly.

"What?"

"If any of the hares in here are to survive, you're letting the travelers take too much food."

"You know as well as I do that none who stay _will_ survive." Advigilian muttered quietly.

"Yes, but you don't want your fighters to know that."

"They already do."

"Defeatist attitudes will only get you defeated." Fallen retorted and then straightened. "Fine. If you won't ask me to do it, I'll volunteer."

"What're you talkin' about?"

"You know exactly what I'm talking about. Otherwise you wouldn't've woken me up to tell me the hares are leaving." Fallen stretched slowly, frowning. "I'll take the travelers a safe distance away and point them in Redwall's direction. And I'll make sure there's enough food. _You_ may be planning on dying, but I'm not."

"Then don't come back." Advigilian told him. "You're not part of this mountain, Fallen. You don't have to be here to watch it fall."

"I'm part of the world, badger, and I have my own scores to settle." He shrugged. "Besides, I doubt I will die here."

"Must be nice."

Fallen blinked at him. "I'm taking over the travelers and restricting their food supply. You might want to tell them I have authority before I have to fight for it."

"Fine." Advigilian hesitated and shifted as if uncomfortable. "And thank you for getting them away from here."

"I'm the hero of the time, badger." Fallen gave a quick, meaningless smile that seemed like an excuse to grimace. "What else _could_ I do?"

…

"Squirrel!" Someone was shaking him. "Squirrel, wake up!"

"Wha' d'you want?" Root demanded, throwing an arm out wildly in a hope to slap his attacker over the face.

"The otter is gone!"

Root snorted and gestured to his left. "Red's over there."

"No, she's not. That's the problem." The idiot kept shaking him. "She's gone missing."

Root gave a heavy sigh and rubbed at his eyelids, sitting up slowly. A ferret was crouched down beside him. "Redsplash is missing." The ferret told him excitedly.

Root glanced over at where Redsplash should've been curled up, snoring her little heart out. "Hmm…guess she is. Sade's probably with her, though."

"The other otter? No. He's gettin' ready to kill the captives."

"Oh, damn." Root groaned. "I didn't wanna hear that. From now on, don't tell me anythin' that would send a happy mouse mother into hysterics, alright?"

"Uh…alright."

"Good." Root nodded and stood up to peer out the tent. "Why can I see a mountain?"

"Because we're at Salamandastron."

"How'd I get here?"

"You were carried in a wagon. I think the…Sade got you to drink some kind of sleeping potion, sir."

"Oh, alright then." Root felt altogether bad. **_You're sober._** He rolled his eyes.

_I know_.

_**You shouldn't drink so much. **_

_It shuts you up. Now stop talking to me, I'm trying to concentrate._

"Should I tell Sade that Redsplash is-"

"No." Root interrupted with surprising vehemence. _I know where she's gone_. "I'll get her."

"Alone, sir?"

"Of course."

"It's not safe."

"Is it ever?" Root retorted and grabbed the dagger from the ferret's belt before bounding off towards where he knew Redsplash would be. _This is gonna be a long day._

…

Redsplash didn't know what had led her back here. It was stupid. How she even recognized this pathetic little lump, she wasn't quite sure. But she knew. Knew exactly whose body was buried here.

"Fate…" A whisper that tore itself past her lips. She clamped her jaw shut so hard her entire skull shook. He was _dead_! He couldn't hear her.

With a sigh, she let herself slip to the ground. The recognition that she was lying so that, if she were to die and be buried now, she would be laying right beside Fatefiend, was barely more than a whisper. She wasn't sure what had brought her here, and she didn't know what to do with this fierce ache in her gut. It wouldn't leave her alone anymore.

"It isn't fair, Fate." More words slipping out. Strange, how she didn't even care now. "I never did _anything_. I never deserved all of this."

A brief pause, and she knew what Fatefiend would have said. He would have reminded her of all those relatively innocent beasts she'd slaughtered to ease her own life. He'd bring up how she lacked a conscience and how her eyes had that odd tendency to turn red and betray the berserker inside her.

"Before all that, Fate. Before you met me. You know now, don't you? You said you did. I didn't deserve it then, Fate. I never did anything to deserve this."

"That's not how it works."

"Fate?"

A deep, fatigued sigh. "No. I'm sorry, Redsplash."

Redsplash opened her eyes and saw Root, a tired, sick look on his face. He seemed thinner than she remembered, as if something had snuck inside him and was eating away at him. "Root."

"Yes. 's just me." He seemed to waver for a minute, almost like a mirage, and then kneeled and shook his head as if it pained him.

"You sick?"

"Sober."

"My sympathies." Redsplash murmured. "What're you doin' here?"

"Some ferret woke me up to tell me you were missing. Seems Darkclaw's got the army watchin' you."

"I know. He thinks I can't take care of myself."

"You can't."

"What?"

"I can't. Darkclaw can't. Sade can't. If we were ever meant to take care of ourselves, we wouldn't have mothers. Or fathers. Or siblings. Or even friends. We aren't supposed to be solitary creatures, Redsplash. Why d'you think it hurts so much when someone dies?"

"I dunno. I've never really thought about it."

"No. You don't seem to be too much of a philosopher."

"I'm not even quite sure what that word means."

Root snorted like he was too tired to laugh. "I didn't think so."

"'s not fair, you know."

"I know." Root agreed and there was a brief pause. "What's not fair?"

"That Fatefiend had to die. He was never… I mean, he shouldn't have ever…"

"Died? He was gonna die eventually, Redsplash. Was this death so bad?"

"_Yes_." Redsplash snapped, lifting herself up on an elbow to glare at him for a second before falling backwards, tired. "He never should've been murdered, Fate. An' if it had to happen, it should've been his father. He was supposed to be murdered while tryin' to kill his father, or never murdered at all."

"There's never a way we're _supposed_ to die, Redsplash. I'm not entirely sure any of us should ever die. It's just the way things have to happen."

"How d'you wanna die?"

"I don't have a favorite way to die. I imagine I'll die in a few days, though."

"What?" This time she used both elbows to support herself as she sat up halfway.

"I'm not the best fighter." Root shrugged. "I imagine I'll die tryin' to kill that badger of yours."

Redsplash frowned, eyes narrowed and eyebrows drawn together. "You shouldn't have to die because I wanna kill a badger, Root."

"No, I really shouldn't, but that's loyalty for you. The only thing it's good for is an honorable death."

"Loyalty? What makes you loyal to me?"

"I used to be a slave, remember?" Root demanded, sounding vaguely amused. "I don't imagine it was Darkclaw's idea to save me, and Fatefiend…well, he's dead. So my loyalty goes to you."

"It just doesn't seem right. Death is worse than slavery. You don't owe me your _life_."

"Slavery is infinitely worse than death, Redsplash." Root retorted. "Look what it's done to you."

Redsplash winced. "What d'you mean?"

"Can you imagine what you'd be like if you'd never been a slave? If you'd never had to escape the Nameless One?"

"I'd be weak." Redsplash snapped. "Useless."

"Happy."

"So?" Redsplash demanded. "I'd've never met Fatefiend."

"And you would've never mourned his death."

"But I would've **_never met him_**!" Redsplash snarled.

Root nodded slowly and stood up, looking ill and worn out, bored of life and sick of the taste of air. "So d'you see now, Redsplash? Let Fatefiend's death go. It's not as bad as it would've been if you'd never met him."

…

The hares wanted to rest. Of course they wanted to rest. He'd kept them at a run for nearly two hours now. It was a wonder the older ones and the children had lasted this long. But Fallen was used to miracles, and he would push these hares until he felt he had achieved another one.

He was tired of being responsible for the world, but it was a burden someone had to bear, and he wasn't aware of anyone else who could. So it was his world, and they were his creatures, and it was his duty to protect them. Many of them thought he possessed some kind of magical power. Some strength the world had given to him to guard its creatures with. But, no. He didn't believe he had that. All he had were seasons of training and his futile and clichéd quest for redemption.

"Sir, we need to stop." This obvious statement was voiced with much panting and gasping.

Fallen glanced at the hare running beside him. As far as Fallen could tell, this would be their leader. The hare was a bit young for it, but age had little affect on leadership capabilities. It was only the arrogance of the adults that kept many decent and brilliant leaders down until they were old enough to behave only as hundreds had before them.

He decided to ignore the hare. Of course they needed to stop. But they also needed to survive.

…

"I don't suppose I could convince you not to kill the mouse?" Root questioned tiredly, his eyes locked on the struggling mouse that Sade was currently pondering how to kill.

"No." Sade answered calmly.

"Can I convince you to kill him quick?"

"It's possible." Sade admitted and elaborated at Root's look of surprise. "The wildcat didn't specify how I was to kill them."

"Then just slit his throat. Why be cruel when you don't have to be?"

"Why not?"

"Because what would the world be like if everyone was cruel when they didn't have to be?" Root demanded, attempting to avoid seeing the look of desperation in the mouse's eyes and failing miserably.

Sade seemed to think on this as he tested the perfect balance of a knife. "There would be no change." He decided finally. "Except in you and a few others, perhaps, and I doubt the numbers would be high enough to have a large effect on the world."

Root scowled and decided to change tactics. "Come on, Sade, what's the point? It's just a waste of energy."

"Actually," Sade began with a small, secretive smile that seemed to Root to come straight out of a nightmare, "I think I like it."

"What?"

"I'm not sure." Sade admitted with a minor shrug. "But I think I like it. I admit to being a bit confused as to what happiness and joy are supposed to feel like."

"Sade," Root looked at him with eyes infected with depression, "you're killing me. Seriously. All I'm asking is that you don't kill the mouse all slow and whatnot. It's _cruel_ and it's _useless_, and I _don't want you to_!"

Sade glanced up at the mountain. "I have to drag it out long enough for the screams to get the attention of those in the mountain." The otter told him calmly. "As I only plan on killing three today, I want to get their attention with this one. I can't be wasteful with this. After all, you get no second chances with death."

"No, you don't." Root admitted distantly.

Sade glanced at him and, without looking, tossed up the knife, catching it easily by the tip and took in the look of disturbed awe on Root's face. "No one's making you stay and watch, squirrel. You should go get some sleep."

Root frowned. Somehow, leaving felt like betraying the mouse and the rest of the captives. He didn't know them, but he knew what Sade was going to do to them. If he couldn't save them, he should stay and witness this. Somehow, leaving Sade and the vermin alone was too much like refusing to look too closely at those in power. Bad things happened when no one watched to make sure they didn't.

But he was so tired. And his head hurt.

"Go." Sade ordered suddenly.

"What? Why?" Root inquired, his tone distantly amused. "Do my morals offend you?"

"Yes." Sade answered. "And my killing will offend you. It will be best if we avoid each other."

Root nodded and took a hesitant step away. Sade immediately began strolling towards the mouse. Root froze, his conscience shrieking.

The first scream from the mouse sent him scurrying quickly away.

…

"What're they doing, sir?" Leria demanded, that scared face of hers showing disgust and horror even through the damage.

"I suppose it's an execution." Advigilian answered, his voice tense and his eyes locked on the otter. "Or maybe torture. Hard to tell with vermin. They blur the lines so."

"But it's an…it's an otter. It's an otter doing this."

"I was hoping I was seeing things." Advigilian told her. "But, apparently, I am not."

"No, sir. It's an otter." Leria told him.

"A very well _educated_ one at that." Advigilian acknowledged, and Leria glanced at him, alarmed at the retrained fury in his voice. "He seems to know where all the major blood veins are. He also seems very determined to avoid them."

"Indeed." Leria agreed, staring, open-mouthed, at the mouse who seemed to lack the ability to stop screaming.

"I want to kill that one, Leria." Advigilian told her quietly. "I want to rip him apart."

"Sir, you need to calm down. He's outside the mountain. There's nothing you can do."

"_Nothing I can do_?" Advigilian exploded, turning on the hare with a snarl.

She met his gaze, tilting her chin up in defiance of his rage. "Nothing you can do." She replied. "You shouldn't watch this, sir. It's what they want you to do."

"I **_know_** that!" Advigilian roared. "I am **_very well aware_**!"

She took a small step back, disturbed by rapid changing of his eyes. They'd gone red, redder than she'd seen even back when Advigilian had led all his hares against the vermin seasons ago. He was past furious. He was insane.

"Sir, you shouldn't watch this." She told him again.

His shoulders twitched and his eyes flashed and…he slumped, tired, disgusted, and helpless. Now wasn't the time for the final battle of his life. He had to give Fallen enough time to get the survivors a safe distance away.

"I hate this." Advigilian told her, turning his back and digging his claws into the tiny window slit. "I _hate_ this part of my responsibilities."

"Waiting?" Leria suggested quietly.

"_Sacrificing_." Advigilian growled in a fit of desperate, bloodthirsty, powerlessness. "I _hate_ having to let one beast die so others may live. Who am I to make this decision? How is _one_ life any more important than another's?"

Leria was silent for a long time, apparently not sure how to answer. Finally, she spoke in her strange, garbled way. "Sometimes there are some things you have to do, sir. Even when you'd rather die."

Advigilian laughed a sick, disappointed-in-life type of laugh. "It's time like this that remind me why I used to want to die, Leria. Thankfully there won't be many more."

…

Fallen sat in the highest branch study enough to bear his weight, staring at the map in front of him. He didn't need to have it out. He'd memorized it seasons ago. It was one of the few objects he had that held any sentimental value. But such a strong pull it had…

It was old paper, but very strong. Despite the many times it had been rolled and unrolled, there wasn't a single blurring of ink or tear. Perhaps it was because he had taken such good care of it. Or perhaps it was because items with so much power in them never really seem to change at all. He hoped it would never change.

He turned it over carefully to look on the back, as he always did. A simple message adorned it. Fallen's eyes closed and his brow furrowed as he felt the familiar stabbing of painful memories and childish yearning. He knew the words without ever having to look at them.

'_I don't know why you won't go with us. You'll never find redemption for a crime you didn't commit. But once you're done with all this idiocy, come to Redwall. It is-has always been-a home for those who've lost theirs. It's where you belong now._' A simple message, from one of the few _real_ friends he had, that had endured for seasons. An offer of a home Fallen had never taken up. _Could_ never take up. He'd had a home once. And he'd lost it. He didn't deserve a second one.

Below the signature, a name. _Luke_. And below that…a depiction of a flower.

That's what confused so many. The flower. That's why Fallen always avoided showing anyone this map. Because they always looked at the message, read it without his permission, and asked about the flower. That damn flower.

A Zinnia. White. A flower that meant 'thinking of an absent friend.' Which, of course, they were all doing at the time. Still did, occasionally. Fallen knew well that the pain had probably not dulled for at all Luke. But for Fallen…well…he'd lost many friends these long seasons. And he'd learned how to choke the pain of it to nothing and pretend he didn't care.

He was not the same he had been when Luke had issued this invitation. And if he hadn't deserved a home then, he certainly didn't deserve one now.

"Why're you lookin' at a flower?"

Fallen turned his head to stare at the hare that had scaled the tree and was now perched just above him, the one that would probably be the leader. "What else would I look at?" He asked quietly.

"The _front_ of the map?" She suggested.

"But that's just a picture." Fallen told her. "Just a map. I've already seen it."

"You're lookin' at a picture of a flower."

"With a great many words and meanings behind it. Every picture has a story. The map just tells you how to get where you're going. The flower, though. There's an epic's worth of words and stories behind _that_."

"Hmm." She rolled her eyes at him. "D'you have any food?"

"None that you'd like." He answered. "Besides, we'll be moving again soon in a few minutes. If you have food in your stomach, you'll vomit it up."

"Are you tryin' to kill us?"

"Not actively." Fallen shrugged and folded the map up carefully, sealing away memories with the ease of one who'd had too much practice at it. "Now get out of this tree before you fall and break your neck. We don't have time for a burial."

…

Redsplash stared up at the sun, wondering how long she'd been here. And wondering if she was ever going to leave. She knew she should. She was accomplishing nothing here. But the power to move eluded her. Her mind ordered arms and legs to work, to stand, and they openly defied her. So she lay there, staring up at the sky.

_This is useless. Just stand up._ She tried, again, to force herself to move. Nothing happened. _Damn it._

She sighed heavily and glared at the sky. This was getting entirely too annoying. She wasn't an invalid! She could stand up!

_There's the problem, then. You don't want to._

Redsplash scowled at her thoughts. What right did her brain have to go and start **_thinking_**?

_What right do you have to sit up here all day? I'm **hungry**. Stand up and go get me food!_

Ah, so it wasn't her mind. It was her stomach. Figured.

_This isn't funny. I'm **hungry**._

…

_Root stared at the mouse before him. He remembered him. From another dream. But the mouse had seemed different then. More…alive. Now he seemed distant and weary. As if the world was destroying itself in front of him, and he couldn't save it. Not anymore._

"_I want you to stop drinking."_

_Root blinked at him. "What?"_

"_You're the last good one left there now. Besides **him**. And he left the mountain today with a bunch of hares and won't be back until the battle starts. Not that he's any in shape to be going to battle. He **needs** to go to Redwall so I can influence him. There's no use in me trying now. His mind is far too protected."_

_Root blinked at him. "Who're we talkin' about, again?"_

_The mouse gave him a long, tired look. "Someone you'll meet if you live long enough. Would you tell me what you plan to do once the otter leads the vermin to battle?"_

"_Darkclaw's in charge."_

"_And he's only doing this to humor **her**. And to kill a badger. But if that was all he was interested in, he wouldn't have gone about it this way."_

_Root's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "Umm…sure."_

_The mouse snorted. "Do you remember days ago when the thought of killing anything repulsed you?"_

_Root blinked. "It still does."_

"_You're lying. You know you're lying. You're going to go to battle and kill for that…**otter**."_

"_Redsplash?"_

"_Yes. She's surprisingly influential for an individual completely lacking in charisma and charm. She's got one of **their** tribe feeling, a hero going numb, a Warheart going out of his way to keep her happy, and a pacifist willing to kill. I'd almost have to give her credit for doing the near-impossible if I didn't know it was all on accident."_

"_Aw, give 'er some of the credit, mousie." Came a familiar voice. "She's not as stupid as she likes to think she is."_

_Root's eyes widened in shock and he gaped at the ferret standing beside the mouse, a tense smile on his face. "**Fatefiend**?"_

"_Were you exceptin' someone else?" The ferret queried. "Cuz if you were, they aren't comin'. Too busy bemoanin' the comin' of the apocalypse." He snorted and rolled his eyes. "Like that ever got anyone anywhere."_

"_But…but you're dead."_

_Fatefiend gasped, one paw going to his heart. "I **am**?" He demanded and then let his paw drop to his side and gave a small, ironic grin. "Course I'm dead, squirrel. Doesn't mean I can't haunt your nightmares."_

"_I didn't invite you here." The mouse told Fatefiend sharply._

"_I didn't care. I sensed me old buddy and decided to pay a visit. 's the respectful thing to do. You understand." Fatefiend surveyed Root critically, as if searching for a fault he knew would be there. "Been drinkin' lately, Root?"_

"_Why does everyone keep bringing that up?" Root demanded._

"_Cuz I can smell your breath way over here." Fatefiend retorted. "And you can't smell **anythin**' through a dream like this."_

"_Ferret…" The mouse warned, seeming to be on the verge of a rather large breakdown._

"_Oh, calm down, mousie." Fatefiend told him cheerfully. "I've come up with a solution."_

"_To what?" Root inquired._

"_To who?" The mouse asked at the same time. The mouse and the squirrel looked at each other with bleary curiosity._

"_To Root's whole moral deterioration."_

"_Have you?" The mouse raised a brow._

"_My morals are not deteriorating!" Root objected._

"_Course they are." Fatefiend told the squirrel. "But, luckily, you can avoid any more of it by using those healing skills o' yours."_

"_What?" Root inquired._

"_Jus' set up a tent somewhere and do your best to help the wounded." Fatefiend shrugged. "Easy enough."_

"_They're **vermin**!" The mouse snarled._

_Fatefiend's eyes flashed and it seemed that this fight was a familiar one. "Oh, **are**_ _they? Well, shock as it may be to **you**, mousie, but **so am I**."_

"_He's got ya there." Root told the mouse seriously. "He **is** a ferret."_

"_I **know** that." The mouse snapped. "What I can't figure out is why it hasn't occurred to **him** that he is the **only **good ferret that had **ever existed**!"_

_Fatefiend growled and crossed his arms over his chest, mumbling something that sounded decidedly unpleasant._

"_Adthe is a **stoat**!" The mouse snapped. "And he hasn't done **anything** to prove he belongs here!"_

"_He shouldn't **have to**!" Fatefiend bellowed. "Mice don't! Hares don't! The only reason he has to **prove **he belongs here is because he's a **stoat**!"_

"_And stoats are **evil**!"_

"_So are **ferrets**!"_

"_Excuse me, you two, but is there any point to me being here anymore?" Root interrupted the argument tentatively, attempting to hold back laughter._

_Fatefiend glanced at him, irritated at being distracted. "Set up a tent and save who ya can, Root."_

"_They're **vermin**!" The mouse objected tiredly._

_Fatefiend's eyes locked on his, enraged. "Would you prefer he kill hares?"_

_The mouse winced and then slowly, regretfully, shook his head. "No…"_

"_Then let him heal vermin." Fatefiend snapped and, quite abruptly, Root felt himself being dragged back to consciousness._

…

"Root." Redsplash kicked at him again. "Wake up, Root."

Root groaned and rubbed at his eyes. "I swear, if this happens _one more time_ I'm jus' gonna ignore it. Why does everything happen when I'm tryin' t'_sleep_?"

Redsplash snorted. "Nothin' happened." She told him as she swiped his pillow. "You jus' looked like you were havin' a nightmare."

Root stared at her, eyes narrowed. He remembered his dream this time. Far more clearly than he'd remembered any dream but _the_ dream. "Not really a nightmare."

Redsplash raised an eyebrow. "Well, it _looked_ like it."

Root shrugged uneasily. "Guess it did." He agreed.

Redsplash grabbed several pillows and the propped herself up against them. "Darkclaw says we're gonna draw the badger out of the mountain tomorrow."

"An' how does he imagine we're gonna do that?"

Redsplash stared at the roof of the tent, sighing. "I dunno. He's hard to listen to for more than a minute. I think he's gonna use those prisoners somehow. Somethin' about Sade and torture." She shrugged. "Y'know, an evil-genius master plan. _You_ fill in the blanks."

Root snorted. "Why're you lettin' Sade help him?"

Redsplash shrugged. "Why should I go to the trouble of tellin' him to stop?"

"Cuz _innocents_ will _die_?"

"An' it's better they die innocent." Redsplash stared at him, vaguely confused. "Really, Root, have you no compassion?"

Root gaped at her. "_You_'re accusing _me_ of having no compassion? Have you gone completely _insane_? Has _everyone_ gone completely _insane_?"

Redsplash laughed. "Calm down, Root. You'll hurt yourself." There was a brief moment of very tense silence. "But, seriously, let 'em die now. Dark said they were killin' the cubs tomorrow. Just let it happen, Root. It's better this way."

"It's **_better_** this way?"

Redsplash nodded. "I thought about it today, Root. I've decided I would've much rather died when I was young than lived this hellish life."

"Maybe _they_ would have happy lives! Destiny doesn't hate everyone!"

"No. It doesn't. But _I_ hate the ones who're supposed to have happy lives. Why should _they_ get to be happy? What's so special about them? What's so wrong with me?" Redsplash bared her teeth in annoyance. "So, no. I won't stop Sade. I might even help him."

"You're sick."

"Who isn't?"

…

Sade stared at the bloody knife clutched in his paws. In these recent times, he'd found his mind a dangerous place to inhabit. No longer was it the same cold, orderly place. What had once been a frigid white room was bloodstained and burning. Everything was different now.

Even tastes. A strange sense of _appreciation_ for taste was beginning to worm its way into his unwell mind. What food he'd had today had come with power behind it. Taste had always been used to analyze, to pick up poison or to deem a substance harmless. Now…now it was growing, developing in strange, unnecessary ways.

He considered the bloody blade for a while more and then, triggered by a feeling he had decided must be 'curiosity,' leaned forward and licked at the blood. His eyes narrowed in thoughtful consideration.

Sade decided that, like everything else, it was merely interesting. So far he had failed to find a taste that summoned that emotion he guessed was happiness or joy.

He dropped the knife in the sand between his feet and shifted from a crouch to a more relaxed sitting position. Blue eyes drifted up towards the stars, and he wondered if he could burn them out of the sky.

There were so much new possibilities now.

But they were all so wrong. So hideously deformed.

The fact that he felt at _all_ was a monstrosity. One he could only defend by analyzing everything with as close to a cold, calculating mind as he could get now. The problem was that, now that his training had failed, he was beginning to get some sick sort of personal _preference_.

Gods…a _personality_.

And it disgusted him.

He was glad that he'd be dead soon enough. Because there was this strange new voice whispering in the back of his mind, telling him that what he was doing was wrong. Telling him, ordering him, screaming at him.

And he knew what it was.

_What am I going to do with a conscience?_

…

"_Sade? Why don't you laugh anymore?"_

"_I am not allowed to."_


	17. Chapter Seventeen

((Well, one chapter left after this one. I actually have the last one about a quarter of the way done. I wrote this one and most of the next one in one day after a brief surge of interest in writing on a story that involved swords, battles, and deep emotional scars. Hmm…s'ppose it all comes from finally watching that last Lord of the Rings. Must say it's quite an interesting movie. Lots of violence, and humor, and that whole sense of 'there's no hope left at all…' that's always fun. Of course, the heroes were nice too. Lovely people. They can save my world any day. Long as _I _don't have to, right?

Anyway, first battle scene I've done all year. I'm afraid I've gotten a bit out of the habit. And, apparently, it's not one of those things you never forget how to do, like riding a bike. But, I tried. Remember, that's the important thing. Right? Well…I'll hope so. Oh, and I included a nice list of future characters for, you know, kicks. See if you can find it.))

…

Fallen stared at the sunrise, once again wondering how he'd managed to stumble upon this purpose in life. Was he born to sacrifice what life he'd had for the lives of others? Was he always supposed to be this? Was it destiny or just an almost-honest mistake? How could such a young sniveling coward turn into this _thing_ he'd become? If it were possible for him to change so much, could anyone else? If such a strong trait as intense cowardice could turn into indifferent courage, could evil turn into good?

Was murdering Brighteye the right thing to do?

No. Never.

Not her.

But Redsplash? Did _Redsplash_ deserve to die?

Despite the fact that they were essentially the same otter, they were so different in nature. Perhaps this creature that called herself 'Redsplash' had already gone through her change in life. She'd gone from good to evil. Was it possible to change back, or, once you changed, were you that forever, and nothing else?

And why was it his job both to kill and to ponder the morality of killing? Surely, there was someone else who could criticize all his kills without him doing the same…

But other beasts seemed to lose their own wills and consciences when he was there to lead them along. As if they took it for granted that he knew exactly what was right, how to do it, and what needed to be sacrificed. They were followers, sheep, all of them. Waiting around stupidly as the wolves nipped at their heels. Waiting for him, and he had so many other things to do…

Maybe once this was all over he would just go and become a hermit fisherman. It seemed like a nice enough life to him.

Unfortunately, the world had its claws dug firmly into him. His responsibility was its upkeep. His death would be bloody and slow, and he would die trying to save another of those damned lost causes he always managed to get involved in. After all, that was all he'd ever really done.

Faces flashed past in his memory, upturned, pleading. They needed him. They needed him…

No.

They needed his strength. Needed his intelligence. Needed his stubborn refusal to die. Needed his cunning, his skill, his belief in justice.

But him, they did not need. Like a machine, he saved them, protected them, bleed for them, and then abandoned them. Next crisis, next battle, next victory.

Next celebration where he drank just a bit too much and sulked just a bit too obviously. What kind of a hero was he?

A lonely hero. A bitter hero. There were supposed to be others…the funny one, the sarcastic one, the sincere one, the caustic one and the thoughtful one, the optimistic fatalist... They were supposed to be with him, lounging around, calling out jokes and insults, snarling and drawing weapons…

But they were gone. Some, he didn't know where. One of them he knew was dead, one of them wishing to be, and one of them…well…he was never quite reliable. Who knew where he was, these days? Off drinking and killing and pretending he didn't care that the world was ending around him. He'd be by someday…both of them, maybe. Probably even the other four or five he'd traveled with. If they were alive…

After all, there were so few safe places left in the world for heroes to hide from what they were. Luke hid his bloody paws in an abbey of pacifists. Nyris was undoubtedly sleeping comfortably in her tree home, dagger under her pillow and door locked. None of them wanted to confront what they knew was coming.

They'd left it to him.

And he supposed it was his fault. After all, he was the only idiot searching for redemption. Except for, perhaps, Luke, and Luke had his own ways of seeking to be redeemed, and they didn't involve violence and blood.

Fallen sighed and shifted, rubbing at his tired eyes. It wasn't typically a good idea to go into battle tired, but Fallen had little choice. With the way things were going, he might not make it back to the mountain in time for the battle at all. He would need to hurry.

"So…when're we leavin'?" A voice chirped from beside him. A young hare, the one who'd climbed the tree yesterday, stared up at him, serious and sleepy-eyed. She was the only one awake…except, obviously, for himself.

"What?" Fallen asked, a bit confused by her sudden appearance.

"When're we leaving? For Redwall."

"Oh. That." He looked down at her. "I'm not going."

"_What_?"

"I've got to go back to Salamandastron." He shrugged. "I only brought you hares far enough out so no one would find you. It's a long way back so I'd prefer to leave now."

"But…but we don't know the way! You can't just abandon us out here!"

"You think I'd do that?" Fallen glanced down at her.

"…Maybe."

"Good. You need to be suspicious in this world. It'll rip you apart if you let it." He picked his bag up off the ground and pulled out a rolled piece of paper. Carefully, he handed it to the hare. "This'll get you there. If any of you can read a map."

She stared at him and unrolled the map. The one that would take him to Redwall. That place he was supposed to go to. His "home."

He wondered why, of all things, he had to become sentimentally attached to a damn _map_.

His eyes skittered away as the hare unrolled it awkwardly and, having seen it yesterday, turned it over to read the message. There was a moment of silence. "Who's this 'Luke?'"

"Abby Warrior. He'll know I sent you if you show him that map."

"Would he not let us in otherwise?"

"Oh, he would. But now he'll know I'm alive." Fallen closed the bag carefully and shrugged it on over his shoulders.

"Couldn't I just _tell_ him you're alive?"

"No good. I go by a different name than the one he'd recognize."

Silence. "This map is kinda important to you, isn't it?"

"It's a map. I've memorized the route. I don't need it."

"Then why did you just give me three answers without answerin' my question?"

He looked down at her and laughed. "You're pretty intuitive for one your size."

"And you're still not answering the question."

"Ah, and what am I supposed to say?" Fallen asked with a grin, "That it was given to me by a friend I'll never see again? Would that satisfy you?"

"Is it the truth?"

"Yes."

"Then I suppose it'll have to." She rolled the map up carefully. "I promise I'll keep it safe."

"Because maps are in such great peril these days."

She scowled at him, apparently not approving of his way of joking in the face of something so serious as an oath. "I'm _serious_."

"Burn it if you want to. I'll never see _you_ again either, little hare."

"You will too. If you don't come to Redwall, I'll come find _you_. Like I'll have anything else to do at that stupid, boring abbey."

Fallen laughed. "And how, exactly, do you plan on finding me? Ever been trained to track a tracker?"

"No. But I bet this Luke'll take a stab at it. And heroes always need sidekicks. Makes 'em seem important." She told him knowledgably.

"Right." Fallen agreed. "Good luck with that one. Luke hasn't had a sidekick since the last time he _was_ one."

"I'll persuade him."

"Poor mouse."

"Right."

Fallen nodded, suddenly remembering he had something more important to do than chat with a hare. "Well, I'd better be going then. Got to go fight for a cause an' all. Save the world from itself."

"You're silly for a hero."

"You're sensible for a sidekick." Fallen retorted and set off back towards the mountain. He had important things to do, lives to end, worlds to save.

So why did it feel like he was just going off to a boring job? What had happened to the sense of _duty_?

He sighed and picked up his pace, breaking into a light jog. He doubted the battle would begin until mid-afternoon at the earliest, but, still, he had to hurry back.

…

"Run _faster_!" Root called after the retreating back of ferret he'd sent for more supplies. "Honestly, Darkclaw, how am I supposed to _work_ in these conditions?"

"You've got fifty of my soldiers, squirrel." Darkclaw informed him darkly.

"And you're sending _thousands_ to battle."

"Yes. And I don't particularly care if _any_ of them survive. So be happy with what I give you."

"Anyone ever told you that you were a bastard?" Root snapped at him.

"Yes." Darkclaw retorted. "Now, if you're done whining, I have battle plans to explain."

"What plan is there to it? You just send Sade out there to beat around a few helpless babies and when the badger comes out, you kill him." Root raised a brow. "Is there some kind of wonderful, strategic miracle I'm missing here?"

Darkclaw scowled at him. "You'd be surprised how stupid some of the lieutenants are." He remarked as he stalked out of the tent, his tail snapping in basic agitation.

Root watched him go. "Cat just likes to hear himself talk." He muttered to the weasel beside him that had become his unofficial assistant. The squirrel slumped against the table and groaned in pain. "I need a drink."

"Would you like me to get you one, sir?" The weasel offered quickly.

Root looked up at him through his paws. He hesitated for a very long time. "No." He answered finally. "No, I'm tryin' to stay sober."

The weasel snorted, rolling his eyes.

"What? What was that?" Root demanded. "Do you doubt me?"

"Of course not, sir." The weasel responded with a completely straight face.

Root frowned at him. "Right." He agreed doubtfully. "Well, I'm _going_ to make it. It's just liquid, after all."

The weasel gave a superior, disbelieving laugh, and Root shot him a nasty look.

"Go find that stupid ferret I sent for supplies. He should've been back by now." Root ordered, knowing very well that the ferret probably hadn't even made it to the supplies tent yet.

"Yes, sir," The weasel respond smugly and went off at a quick jog.

"This is going to kill me." Root complained quietly as he rubbed at his aching head.

…

_Redsplash was standing on a battlefield. Death was all around her. The smell of it filled her nostrils. The taste of it lingered in the back of her throat, threatening to choke her. The slimy feel of blood covered her, paired with the chunky wet feeling of gore and intestines. And the sight…well, the sight was too overpowering for her to comprehend._

_So much death. So much destruction._

_And she had brought it here._

_The air was curiously still, though the sounds of a great wind echoed in from the nearby sea. She felt no wind, saw no signs of it, but the sound of it was there. It was almost as if some great giant was sucking in its dying breath. She tried her best to ignore it._

_She breathed deeply and nearly fainted at the unbelievable pain emanating from her ribs. She glanced downward to find her shirt and armor torn to reveal a deep, circular wound. A mace, then. A paw reached up to pull the fluttering fabric back and something red-soaked and white showed through the massive amount of blood._

_Ribs laid bare to the world. What kind of hellish place was this, where she would still live through a wound like that?_

_Redsplash closed her eyes and snarled at the pain, pushing it back with a ferocity that drained nearly all the energy in her. And then, she took a step forward._

_The world lurched around her. Earthquakes and volcanoes of pain burst from her ribs, her legs, her back. She froze and waited for them to fade._

_And then, another step._

_This psychotic dance continued until, at last, she found what she hadn't known she was looking for: the badger._

_He lay sprawled on his back, eyes wide and staring accusatively up at the sky. Blood covered his armor, and a dozen or more arrows poked out of the tiny slits of flesh the armor had not protected. His helm was missing, and a gigantic slash through his neck revealed what had finally destroyed him._

_Blood had dribbled from his muzzle, and his colossal sword lay next to him, abandoned and useless. What use was a sword with no paw to wield it? A danger is only a danger if there is a force behind it._

_Redsplash's own sword dropped from her paws, and she stared at the creature in front of her. Dead. Dead like all the others. And she couldn't make herself think of him as the monster he was supposed to be._

_Just another victim. Just another casualty of her life._

_She drew in a sharp breath, wondering at the pain that didn't come for any wound, and found herself flying. _

_Over the battlefield. So high she shouldn't be able to see even the mountain in any great detail._

_But she saw all of them. Every single creature that had died for her, and her fanatical vendetta._

_Darkclaw, run through by a spear, broadswords too far out of reach to be of any use. He was surrounded by the bodies of hares that bore the signs of his claws. Redsplash wondered distantly how many lives had been sacrificed to separate the wildcat and his blades._

_Whatever the sacrifice, it had done its job. No hare could have defeated him if he were armed. Redsplash couldn't believe it possible._

_She tired to close her eyes, to forget this mass grave below her, but found her gaze drawn to a body she had not expected._

_Root's._

_He lay just outside of what appeared to the healer's tent. Inside, the wounded had been slaughtered in some fit of senseless rage. It looked as if the squirrel had died trying to keep away whatever monster had come for the helpless. A hero's death, then. Damn the bastard for his stupid acts of justice._

_What right did he have to die and leave her here?_

_What was the use in flying if you couldn't boast of it to **someone**?_

_And, then, Sade. Of course, Sade. Why not him as well?_

_His head had been completely severed from his body, and a look of pure relief still managed to show through his death-glazed eyes. He was dead, **dead**. And he looked far too happy about it._

_Redsplash wondered if she had killed him. She had promised too, hadn't she?_

_She found herself foolishly hoping she hadn't. Because, somehow, if she hadn't, then it wasn't her fault._

_But what point was there in hoping it wasn't her fault? He'd had no real **life**. No real soul. He hadn't deserved to be alive anymore than Fate had deserved death._

_And that was the whole point. The reason behind this battle, this massacre of both sides. Because none of them should be alive._

_Not even her._

_Not if Fatefiend couldn't be._

_Suddenly, she found herself in a field. The grass grew tall and thick, nearly up to her knees. The stench and taste of death was gone, replaced with a sense of home. Of places in her memory she had forced herself to forget._

_Peace. Life. Happiness._

_She was home._

_A smile lit up her face. A stupid, pleasant, little feeling started filling up her stomach. She turned in a slow circle, taking in the sight of paradise._

_And found Fatefiend, sitting on ancient stone steps that led up to a closed, arched stone-and-wood gate. In his paws, he held a bowl, and he stared down at it with an expression of such bitterness and sorrow that it almost killed the newfound happiness within her._

"_Fate!" She cried. "**Fate**!"_

_He didn't even look up. The bowl entranced him._

_Well. If he couldn't come to her, she would, naturally, have to go to him._

_She set off towards him, battling the long grass that seemed to clutch at her like the paws of all those she'd brought death to. But she fought them and, eventually, they let go._

_The sprint across the field made her lose her breath and, as she neared the ferret, she slowed to a walk, gasping. "Fate." She wheezed. "Fate, will you stop looking at that bloody bowl and say hello? D'you have any **idea** what I've been through to see you again?"_

_She saw him tense and then, gradually, let out a breath. He stood up, still peering down at the bowl. With great care, he placed the bowl on the step he had just been sitting on, and straightened._

_He just had to lift his chin, and he would see her. And once he saw her, then he wouldn't really be dead. Or she wouldn't really be alive. Whichever, it did not matter. Not to her._

_And then, slowly and resolutely, he turned his back on her. Something about the way he did it, about the way his eyes were still firmly locked on the stone, told her he knew very well she was there. That he was doing this on purpose, abandoning her, leaving her. Again._

_But this time, he had a choice. And he'd chosen to desert her._

"_Fatefiend!" Redsplash cried out, unable to believe he would leave her. "Fatefiend, don't! You **can't** leave me! Not again!"_

_He hesitated for a long moment and then, slowly, began climbing up the cracked stone steps towards the closed gate. She tried to chase after him, but found she couldn't move. The grass wound tight around her legs and would not let go. Once again, she was helpless to stop him from leaving her._

"_**Fatefiend**! **Don't leave me here**!" She shouted, screaming at him._

_The ferret ignored her, moving up that last step._

"_**Why**?" She shrieked. "**WHY**?"_

_He hesitated, his paw on the wooden gate. "Redsplash," he breathed so quietly she could barely hear him. "Redsplash, what have you done?"_

_The gate opened, and a great light came out, as if the sun shown from inside, and when it closed, Fatefiend was no longer there._

_The grass released her, and she flew up the stone steps and flung herself against the gate. There was no way in. Not for her. _

_She wasn't allowed._

_She battered her fists against it and then, slowly, slid down until she found herself crumpled on the stone, breathing heavily. The pain from her ribs was unbearable, and the cold of the stone stung. But, what did that matter?_

_She wasn't good enough for Fatefiend anymore. Not even good enough for him to yell out, to hate. She could tell from his tone that he didn't hate her._

_He pitied her. He mourned her. He felt for her like she would feel for a bird with broken wings. She was something he couldn't help. So he'd had to let her go, sever his ties to her, to save his own heart. To save himself the pain._

_And if he could do that, it meant she was truly beyond everything. Not even a rat's friend would have to do **this**._

_She choked on something, possibly her own crushing self-pity, and coughed and jerked until she found herself staring down straight into the bowl Fatefiend had valued so dearly._

_For a second she had the urge to throw it, to shatter it, and then the first image shimmered to the surface._

_**The badger stared up at her, anguish and disbelief in his eyes. He was on his knees, their eyes at the same height from the ground now. For all his strength, he could be brought down to her level. For all his greatness, he wasn't immortal.**_

_**His lips moved, but she could not hear. She saw herself snarl a reply. He looked at her, tired, not understanding, and answered.**_

_**She watched her eyes widen and glow with red hatred, and then, with him kneeling, wounded, and helpless, she slit his throat. He seemed to shiver and then fell, slowly. As if gravity itself did not want to bring him down. As if the world did not want to see him fall.**_

_**She saw herself sneer at his corpse as droplets of blood dribbled from his gaping mouth, and she cleaned her bloody dagger on his face. **_

_**She stepped back to stare at the corpse and then in a final spasm of hate, spat on him.**_

_**When she turned, it was to find axe, whirling end-over-end, coming straight at her face.**_

_**A body leaped in front of her, and then slammed into her as something altered its course. It was Sade, and the axe had lodged deep in his chest.**_

_**She cried out softly, both in and out of the image, and then watched as she dragged him away from the badger, propping him up against an outcropping of rocks. He looked at her, the first real smile she had ever seen lighting his fading eyes.**_

_**She watched herself shake her head, denying it. His smile grew, and he relaxed against the rocks. **_

_**Slowly, his smile faded.**_

_**The entire bowl tinted red and, though there was no sound she could hear, she could **feel **herself screaming in anger. And everything went by quickly after that. Hares, rats, weasels, stoats. Everything died on her blade.**_

_**She didn't care. It was senseless slaughter. A bloodlust that seemed to drive everything from her mind.**_

_**She watched in disbelief as, finally, everyone lay dead.**_

_**Everyone but Darkclaw who was slowly picking himself off the ground. Hares lay sprawled around him, dead. He, himself, was wounded, but fighting to stand up. He looked at her and, slowly, his slight grin turned into a disbelieving stare.**_

_**She watched herself pick up a spear and then saw it pierce Darkclaw straight through the heart.**_

_**He fell back, and she knew he was dead.**_

_**Redsplash watched herself standing there, breathing heavily and so bloody her fur stuck out in drenched spikes. There was no spot on her broader than an eye that wasn't bloodstained. She was completely covered in a blanket of gore.**_

_**And she, slowly, her head turned towards a spot off the battlefield.**_

_**She watched herself trot purposefully away from the battle.**_

_**To meet Root standing outside the healer's tent, a determined, terrified look on his face. He dropped an empty flask and drew his knife. The look in his green eyes said he knew he was going to die.**_

_**And he did. Quickly, effectively, thoughtlessly.**_

_**And then, each of the hundred or so wounded. Some tried to get away. Those that could crawl, did. But she hunted them all down and slaughtered every one of them. Redsplash could feel the hatred, the anger, the jealously radiating out of the image.**_

_**The thought came to her: **Why should they live? Live, when he is dead? Dead. Dead like I should be. Dead like they _will _be. Die! Die, you _bastardsDie

_**And, in its sickness and its insanity, it made a beautiful sort of poetic sense. She watched herself hunt for any left living and understood her other self perfectly.**_

_**She didn't want to the kill the badger anymore. No. She simply wanted to the kill the world.**_

_**And, when no more victims presented themselves, she watched herself trot back to the battlefield. Perhaps to make sure none had escaped her notice. And, as it turned out, one had.**_

_**Sade.**_

_**She watched herself watching him pull himself up to a kneeling poison. He stared at up her tiredly and reached weakly for the axe that was still embedded inside him. With an open-mouthed scream she could not hear, she watched him pull the bloody axe out of himself. He collapsed briefly from the pain of it and then slowly, determinedly, pulled himself back up.**_

_**He stared at her and in his eyes she could see his purpose, hear his thoughts. He could not rest, because he had to stop her. Had to keep her from her rightful position as Executioner. As Assassin of the World.**_

_**But he was so weak…**_

_**She watched him throw the axe at her and some part of her hoped, begged, that it would kill her. They are strange, the times you find there is still good in you. Strange, indeed…**_

_**But, of course, he missed. She dodged too fast. He couldn't stop her. The world, after all, has a soft spot for its own destruction.**_

**_She watched him watch her slow, stalking approach. She held in her paws the axe that had nearly killed him once._**

_**He breathed difficulty, his chest moving in and out as if it was killing him to keep breathing. His eyes were dulled as she moved behind him. She watched his eyes close in silent acceptance before the axe dug into his throat and then sliced it clean off.**_

_**His body slumped to the ground and blood fed the greedy sand. **_

_**And, slowly, the image of her eyes swam to the top of the bowl, and she saw in her own green eyes the madness she'd always known would get her in the end.**_

"_Redsplash, what have you done?" Redsplash looked up in hopeful surprise, but the gate was still locked, and Fatefiend had still left her._

_And she could feel inside her the madness that laughed at the images she'd just seen. But she could also feel the disgust, the revulsion. No matter what anyone else thought, there was good in her yet. But not enough to save her._

_No. Just enough, as always, to torture her._

_She got to her feet slowly and then, with all her still-considerable strength, threw the bowl at the gate. It shattered, and the water droplets flew away, images of gore and slaughter glinting briefly before they disappeared into the grass and fissures of the stone._

"_It won't happen that way." She growled, knowing she was lying. "I won't **let** it happen that way."_

_And she turned her back on the gate and started down the ancient stone steps._

She woke to find Sade sharpening a sword. He looked at her, blue eyes expressionless. "I was wondering how long you could possibly sleep." He told her blankly.

She sat up quickly. "Sade." Her voice was sharp. "Sade, I dreamed you died."

He stared at her. "Then, by all means, let us hope you have prophetic dreams." He stood up and held the sword out, hilt-first, to her. "I got you a sword.

She stared at him and then took the sword, standing up as she did so. "No, Sade, you don't understand. In my dream, _I _killed you."

He turned his back on her and then returned with a belt and scabbard. "You'll need these, as well."

"_Sade_!" She snapped. "_Listen_!"

He hesitated, the belt and scabbard still in his paws.

"I dreamed I killed you, Root, _and_ Darkclaw. I dreamed I went insane!"

"And have you ever had dreams come true before?" He inquired politely.

She stared at him. _No._ She thought. _No…I haven't_... "No…" She admitted.

"Then why are you worried by dreams, now?"

"Because this one…it _felt_ real, Sade."

"Dreams sometimes do, right before battle." He informed her, his tone somehow soothing and still completely emotionless.

She relaxed, breathing easier now. Actually, she had no idea why she'd been so worried. It was only a dream, after all. "D'yours?" She asked.

He stared at her. "What?"

"Do your dreams feel real? Right before battle?"

A slight frown seemed to settle on his face, though, as far as she could tell, his lips did not move at all. "No." He answered finally. "But, then, I do not dream."

She gaped at him. "Not at all?" He shook his head. "_Never_?"

"When I was a cub, yes." He answered. "But I stopped as I grew. I do not mourn them. They could be very disconcerting."

She nodded, smiling now in relief. "Yes." She agreed. "Very disconcerting."

…

Redsplash found herself dressed for war. She wasn't quite sure how this had happened, only that Sade had kept marching in with more weaponry and more armor until, finally, he seemed content. He seemed to know something she didn't, and the something could not possibly be good. Or, at least, could not possibly be peaceful.

Eventually, she wandered out of her tent and went on a grand trek through the camp until she found the healer's tent. Root was in there, giving orders like had actually had a clue as to what he was doing, and looking very much harassed. His eyes settled on her, and lit briefly with welcome, and images of her murdering him played behind her eyes.

"Redsplash!" He called. "You finally woke up?"

"Apparently." She murmured unhappily and trotted over to him. "You have any idea what you're doin'?" She asked.

"Absolutely none." He answered, his grin wide and his eyes terrified. "Don't suppose you'd have any idea how to do this?"

"Me? Sorry. My experience lies more with the killin'. Less with the healin'."

"So I guessed." He admitted dryly.

She surveyed the tent, and a coldness seeped into her gut. _It looks exactly like it did in my dream…_

"You a'right, there?" Root asked, elbowing her lightly. "What's wrong?"

She shook her head and stared at him. "Nothin'." She told him finally. "I just had a bad dream."

"Oh?" He waited, as if hoping she would tell him about it. She didn't. He sighed and drew out a flask. "Here." He said. "Have this."

It was the flask he'd dropped in her dream right before she'd killed him.

She turned and fled without a word.

About thirty seconds later, she ran headlong into Sade. If he didn't have such amazing reflexes, they both would have fallen. As it was, he just stepped back rather quickly, not quite stumbling, and brought her to a halt.

"What is it?" He asked, reaching for the twin swords on his back.

"N-_nothing_." She snapped. She was rather upset he'd ruined her flight.

His blinked. "In all my travels, I have never seen 'nothing' manage to send someone into a panic." He surveyed her solemnly. "But, you are a strange one."

She stared up at him. _Was that some kind of joke? He's **capable **of jokes?_ "Just…just that dream again." She admitted, somewhat ashamed of it all.

He nodded slowly, his eyes moving about ceaselessly. Again, she was struck by the thought that he knew something she didn't. "And what dream can trouble you after you have woken?"

"It's just…" She held it in a half second more. "Well, I dreamed I killed Root, right? Only, I killed him in the healer's tent. Well, not quite there. Just outside, actually, and, anyway, he had this flask. And he dropped it. In my dream. And he has it now. I just saw it. _Awake_. Not to mention the healer's tent looks _exactly_ like it did in my dream, too."

He was looking straight at her now, his eyes narrowed slightly against the flood of her words. When she was done practically vomiting up her troubles all over him, he waited for a good ten seconds, perhaps suspecting there might be more. Then, his intense gaze moved elsewhere, and what seemed to be a slight smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "And how many variations can there be in a healer's tent, do you suppose? I imagine there are cots in rows, and medicines and bandages lying around, and a few healers standing about."

_He's right_. And, immediately, she started feeling more really stupid and rather relived. "But the flask…" She started with a renewed sense of panic.

"Was the same one he has been carrying around for a good week, was it not?" His eyes flickered back towards hers.

A grin broke out on her face and she wondered how an emotionally dead otter who had asked her to kill him could make so much _sense_. Not to mention kill off the panic that had threatened to overwhelm her. "Y'know, you're makin' me feel really stupid."

"I could stop, if you would like." He offered calmly.

"No! You have _complete_ permission to keep on like this." She shrugged. "I'd rather be stupid than panicked."

"As would we all." He agreed blandly. "Now, if you no longer have need of me, I have Darkclaw's orders to attend to…"

"What orders?" She demanded, somewhat suspiciously. What would he do if she demanded he stay with her and ignore Darkclaw? Maybe she'd have another attack of senseless panic. What if she needed him to make her feel stupid again, and he was off listening to that idiot wildcat?

"To start the war." Sade informed her.

"Start the war?" She demanded, scowling. "And how, _exactly_, is he having you do that?"

"By drawing out the badger." Sade replied.

_Honestly, would it **kill**_ _him to answer in complete sentences? _She was about to demand a full and grammatically correct explanation, when she suddenly remembered. Darkclaw was having Sade torture some prisoners to get the badger out. Right.

"Oh. Yes." She frowned. "Well, then, I guess you'd better get…torturing."

He nodded. "I plan to."

…

It took seven of the cubs and four bloody hours to bring the badger out of his mountain. He knew, of course, that he was going to his death. There was no mystery to his life. Not since he'd seen those carvings in the rock. Of course he would die today.

But at least most of his hares had gone and would get to safety. And he knew, someday, that hares would come back with a new badger. He had seen it. But he also knew of the dark, bitter seasons that stood between then and now. The mountain would fall.

And it would stay empty for many long seasons.

But it was his duty, and the duty of the hares that stayed with him, to fight as best as they could. To die as honorably as possible.

There was nothing else he could do.

So, as his hares lined up behind him and he prepared to push the boulder away from the entrance, he did not mourn his coming death. Only the deaths of all these hares who stood behind him and all those prisoners in their cages who would die soon, too. Because he could not save them.

He could only die for them and hope that was enough.

…

Sade materialized so quickly, Redsplash choked on her apple. The otter hit her on the back so hard the half-chewed piece of fruit went flying across the tent. She turned to hit him back, and found a flask offered in return.

"The badger and his hares are out." He told her blankly. "Drink this, and then come with me."

She took a quick sip and nearly choked again on the harsh liquid. "What _is_ this?"

He shook his head sharply. "Do not think about it." He ordered. "Just drink it."

She stared at him suspiciously but drained it completely. It burned all the way down her throat and into her stomach. "Ugh, that's _nasty_."

He nodded as if acknowledging this, and then grabbed her arm and pulled her out of her seat. "Hurry." He said with no real urgency behind his words.

She got up, wordlessly, and followed him.

All around her, she heard horns blowing and voices shouting. It hit her all at once that this battle really was coming.

A grim smile settled over her face as she imagined ripping the badger to shreds.

…

Root tensed as the horns started booming their macabre messages. His paws went instinctively to the flask at his hip, and he forced himself to take a deep steadying breath. His second-in-command eyed him smugly. "Gettin' thirsty, sir?"

Root scowled at the weasel. "Get the other healers ready." He snapped grumpily. "This is no time to be stupid."

"Or sober." The weasel retorted quietly as he turned towards the others and began bellowing his orders.

Root leaned heavily against the table, completely covered with the bandages he'd managed to gather, and held his head in his hands. He was unable to shake the gut-wrenching feeling that he was going to die today. That his last sight would be this tent, full of vermin screaming in pain.

_Why am I here? This isn't where I was supposed to die…_

…

Fallen heard the sounds of horns bellowing. His lungs, already starved for air, protested as he broke into an all out sprint. He had no choice now. The badger would wait no longer.

The battle was starting, and he was still so far away…

…

Darkclaw watched as the vermin gathered around him. For a brief moment, he considered forcing them to line up, to get in formation. But what was the point to that? Chaos would be far more intimidating to the carefully structured hares. Besides, the numbers were so superiorly stacked in his favor, there was no chance of the hares and badger winning. Not, at least, if the badger could be taken out before he had a chance to use that rather large sword of his.

"Archers, forward!" He shouted. Immediately, he heard beasts stepping forward.

He looked around to find not just archers, but Sade and Redsplash moving towards him. He could see the she-otter's eyes already flickering oddly red. The other otter stood beside her, his eyes blank and his swords sheathed on his back. As Darkclaw's were. But not for long.

"The badger's armor has holes." Darkclaw snarled at the archers. "I want you to aim for the holes, but do _not_ kill him. I want him injured, not dead."

Redsplash snarled, her fangs bared. "_I_ will kill him." She promised.

"If you get to him first." Darkclaw retorted.

"He's **_mine_**!" She growled possessively. Darkclaw's eyes narrowed as Sade's paws headed for his swords. For all his willingness to torture cubs for him, the otter's loyalties still firmly belonged to Redsplash. Best not to anger her then. He didn't need a rebellion right now.

"Of course." Darkclaw told her, and she relaxed slightly, the red glow fading to a tint again. "Archers, tell me when he is within range."

The archers put arrows to the strings and drew the back. The badger and his hares saw this and broke into a run, screaming their ancient war cry.

Darkclaw's upper lip drew back in a sneer. Their traditions wouldn't save them now.

…

Fallen heard the horns grow silent and let himself slow down from a sprint to a jog. He knew he was getting close. Perhaps fifteen minutes run away. And he knew that the tired warrior died the quickest. And he had absolutely no right to die when the world needed him so badly.

He slowed his pace just enough to allow his frantic lungs some air, and his weakening legs some chance to recover. But he did not stop running. Because if he missed this battle, there was a chance he wouldn't be able to track Redsplash down quick enough to stop another massacre in her name.

…

The first arrow bounced harmlessly off his chest plate. But the fifty that followed didn't always follow the first's example.

Advigilian went down, roaring, as a dozen arrows ripped through him.

His hares stumbled, halting, and the vermin took that opportunity to charge.

…

Redsplash found herself in the middle of a roaring, running, _hungry_ mob. She'd lost Sade and Darkclaw after the first few seconds of the charge. They were quicker than she was, and she could not keep up. But she liked it here, in the middle of a bloodthirsty horde. Her own hunger to kill, to rip, to _slaughter_ did not feel at all out of place. It seemed only to drive those around her into a kind of fanatic frenzy.

Here, in this piece of chaos, her bloodlust was shared like the weaker beasts shared love and friendship. Only, friendship had never driven a group of beasts to descend on the first hare they met and rip her arms from her body, trample on her corpse, discard what had once been alive to find fresher prey. Something that could still _scream_.

…

Darkclaw was nearly to the badger when the first hare flung itself at his chest. It was quickly followed by at least seven more. They bore him down with their weight, and his broadswords were ripped from his paws, flung away from him. He was weaponless, and their knives dug into his lightly-armored flesh.

The words of his father echoed out of memory, "_A Warheart is never weaponless_."

His mouth twisted into a demonic grin, and his claws slid out.

…

Redsplash was almost to the badger, running as fast as she possibly could over this damnably slippery sand, when something impossibly solid slammed into her chest. She went flying backwards, her momentum completely reversed, and landed heavily on the sand. A scream of pain was ripped from her, and she writhed in a frantic attempt to get away from the agony.

_A mace to the ribs…_

A deep, freezing terror settled over her, and she stared up into the wild eyes of the hare that had done this to her. His bloodstained mace raised, blocking out the sun.

_Not like this._ **_Not like this!_**

Her bloodwrath returned, and she was up, ignoring the pain. The hare stared in shock as her sword ran him through. She snarled in vicious triumph as she kicked him off her blade and, as he fell, sliced him open from stomach to throat.

His ruined body lay on the ground, and she stood over him, alive. But the realization that had frozen her a second ago was still roaring in the back of her mind.

_Mace to the ribs. Flask. Healer's tent. Badger and the arrows. It's all the same…all of it._

She forced that thought away, letting the beauty of the bloodwrath settle over her, and moved, once more, towards the badger.

…

Fallen came upon the massacre from a high point, perched on a slope. He could see it all. Could see how the outnumbered hares were slaughtering the outclassed vermin. And how the vermin were pressing in around them, waiting for any signs of weakness, and then ripping them apart. He had never seen vermin fight like this. They were supposed to be a cowardly, disorganized lot. Not at all this driven, self-sacrificing mass he saw before him. It was almost as if they weren't at all aware of themselves. As if some other force controlled them, ordered them, sacrificed them.

And, as he watched a lone otter streaking towards the wounded badger lord, he knew how this had happened. There was something about this Redsplash. Some kind of force that came from her. She had absolutely no social skills, no charm, no eloquence, but she drove those around her as if she actually knew what she was doing.

And she did it without ever seeming to mean to.

_If only I had saved her before she became this…if only she could be saved now._

But he knew she could not. Knew in the way she gutted a young, confused hare and stole his spear as he fell, that she was beyond his help.

_There's nothing I can do for you now. Forgive me, Brighteye._

And then he hurried down the slope and towards the battle he'd always hoped he wouldn't have to interfere with.

…

The spear pierced the tiny hole in the badger's armor over his knee, and he went down again, roaring. The rats and stoats around him went flying as he swiped at them with his arms. Around her, bodies lay sprawled. Perhaps they had thought him weak, ready to die. But he came from a long line of badgers who refused to die when they were too weak to stand.

On his knees, he could kill more than any of these vermin would ever slaughter. And, on his knees, he already had.

But the otter was coming for him, her red eyes blazing. She held in her paws another spear and a knife.

He blinked and, before he could open his eyes again, the other spear slammed against his armor, directly over his heart. It did not penetrate, but it dented. Where she got the strength, he did not know, but suddenly it was very hard to breath.

Knowing the folly of it, knowing it was suicide, he forced his helm off his head. He knew his destiny. He would not meet it out of breath and half-blind.

He and the otter were strangely alone, the battle having moved in a different direction. Slowly, he tried to stand.

The otter pulled a dagger out of her boot, tossed it up, caught it, and threw it. She was damn accurate with those slight holes in his armor, and he went down, once more.

With a spear through one knee, and a dagger slicing through a main artery in his leg, he knew standing was beyond him. The arrows stuck out of him like a hedgehogs spikes, only the spikes on a hedgehog didn't slowly kill, drain, ruin. He knew he was dying. He didn't…didn't know _why_ though.

What had driven this otter to this…this _murder_?

"_Why_?" Advigilian demanded, disgusted at the fatigue, the bitterness, the anguish in his voice. "Why are you doing this?"

She stared at him, her eyes wide and red; her hatred obvious. "You killed my _friend_." She snarled at him, trying to show him how much she despised him, how much she wanted him dead. But he knew she hated him. He didn't know the pain, the deep, violent sorrow behind the hatred. He didn't know she hurt just as deep as he did.

"He was only a ferret." The badger replied, weak and dying.

An incomprehensible rage entered her eyes, and the glow turned into a fire. He saw her lunge, felt a searing pain ripping through his neck, and then felt himself falling.

His last sight was the otter that had killed him, and the strangely glinting red eyes. He'd never seen sorrow through blood-colored eyes before…

…

Redsplash stared at the knife she'd just killed the badger with. It was bloody, disgusting. She felt the urge to clean it and her eyes locked on the badger's face, and the clean fur she'd seen herself mar. Knowing she had done it before, would do it again, and there was nothing she could do to fight it, she leaned forward, bloody knife in paw.

And then, suddenly, her paw jerked, and the knife went flying out of her grip. She stared after it, not comprehending, and wondering what it could mean, and heard a strange sound.

She turned to find an axe, whirling end-over-end, coming straight at her face. A body leaped in front of her, and then slammed back into her as something altered its course. It was Sade, and the axe had lodged deep in his chest.

She cried out and grabbed him, lifting him up. He stared up at her, and then looked down at the axe stuck in his chest. His blue eyes blinked, and the tiniest of smiles started growing in his eyes.

Redsplash stood up, holding him as if he were a cub, and looked around. Her eyes settled on the rocks, far away from the frenzy of the battle, and she knew what she had to do.

…

Fallen felt the battle around him, but it didn't seem to matter. He had failed, again. The axe had left his paw, heading straight for Redsplash's heart. But that other otter had stopped him. One of _their_ tribe. Of course. No other could have made that suicidal dive.

The fact remained that he had failed.

And that Redsplash had picked up the self-sacrificing fool as if he meant something to her. Had picked him up and was carrying him away from the battle. As if…as if some part of her still acknowledge the value of life.

He watched her, watched the other otter's head loll back in a way that screamed of death, and knew that Redsplash was carrying a weakening body that was soon to be a corpse. Wasting her time. Wasting her energy. On _life_.

And he knew he couldn't kill her. Maybe he'd known all along. But now the knowledge of it overwhelmed him.

He had failed not because the axe had been stopped, or because some fool had sacrificed himself. But because he wouldn't try again. Because he _couldn't_ try again.

He turned his back on the both of them, on this battle, on the body of the badger who could have stopped all of this but had spared a ferret out of mercy, and started walking away.

There was nothing for him here anymore.

…

Sade felt himself being placed on the sand, his shoulders and skull propped up on cold, clean rocks. His vision swam, his mind reeled, and he knew that he was going to die.

"Sade!" A voice, calling to him. One he had to heed. One with power. _But I'm tired…_

"Sade!" A face peering down at him, troubled and distressed. He recognized her. Strange, how she seemed so far away when he knew she was kneeling right next to him. "Sade, you'll be fine. It's just a little scratch! I promise!"

He wanted to laugh at her. A little scratch? He could practically feel his heart trying to beat around this strange metallic object that had suddenly sliced through his chest. In his lifetime, he'd felt plenty of "scratches." None of them came close to being this liberating.

"_Stop looking so deathy_!" She screeched at him, slapping at his face lightly. His vision swam again and then focused on her face. For some reason, she looked terribly upset. Almost as if she _hadn't_ been planning on killing him after the battle. Not _really_.

She reached out, and her paw tightened around the axe handle, as if she were preparing to pull it out. The axe moved the slightest bit.

And he screamed. Screamed in pain because he hadn't known a pain like this before. His heart was beating so fast that he was sure it was trying to hammer its way out of him. Abandoning him to die heartless, as he had lived.

"Damn!" Redsplash let the axe go and stared down at him. He stared back up at her, tired and dying. The world seemed to fade around him. The colors turning gray…

"Sade…" She bit her lip, and her eyes skittered around nervously. Perhaps she was using her brain for the first time since he had met her. "Sade, don't die."

His eyelids fluttered closed. A strange sense of something…sympathy, he supposed, settled over him. Redsplash didn't want to see him die. She shouldn't have to. But this was out of his control. Beyond his grasp. Death was something even he couldn't fight.

Not that he wanted to.

"Sade, I _order_ you not to die."

_No…**no**._


	18. Chapter Eighteen

((Well, here it is. Another ending and the longest chapter I have ever written. I hate endings. But this one was…eh…fun. I do have a feeling some people aren't going to like how much I left hanging…I'll admit it is pretty much like I just cut the story off whether it was appropriate or not. But at least I'm writing a sequel. If I was feeling particularly evil, I wouldn't even do that. So thanks for reading.

The third part of this trilogy is still untitled and will be up…eventually. The good news is that, originally, this whole soon-to-be trilogy thing started out with what's going to end up as the third part. I pretty much started writing that, got all confused on who was supposed to have done what, and went back to write down some notes on each character's past and how they all related to each other. That's how Vengeance Born came about, and then it got split into two and, finally, here am I where I started. So I pretty much know how I'm going to write everything (having written half of it a few years ago) I just have to work out a few details…like the title.))

…

Something whispered in the back of her mind. A quiet urging, a gentle suggestion. Her conscience, she realized. What little tatters of it she had left, lifting itself up to protest one last time. It told her to go, to just walk away. To _leave_.

But it was smothered.

Sade was dead. **_Dead_**. Or, at least, dying. She could see it in the shallow, weak way he was breathing. His eyes were narrowed slightly; his body was limp. Slowly, he looked at her.

And smiled. It was the first real smile she had ever seen. His smile grew, and he relaxed against the rocks.

Slowly, his smile faded.

His eyes blinked closed…and did not open.

She shuddered, felt a scream crawling up her throat, felt the bloodwrath bursting into her veins, felt a murderous rampage swirling around in her heart…and then…then she stopped.

…

"_What is she doing?"_

"_She…she's changing it."_

"_I thought you said that was impossible."_

"_It is."_

…

Everything she had dreamed, so far, had been true. So…so in the dream she killed Darkclaw, and then Root, then…then Sade. Sade who she had thought was dead. _But he wasn't…_

Slowly, almost fearfully, she felt for a pulse. She knew what would happen if there wasn't one…but what would she do if there _was_ one?

And there it was…his heartbeat, slow but stable. _He's alive…_

She stared at Sade's face and wondered if this changed anything. The bloodwrath still boiled painfully in her belly, screaming for murder. What she had seen in her dream was her destiny, she knew it was. It was who she was supposed to be. Who the world had made her, had _needed_ her to be. It was all she ever could be…

It became painfully clear to her in that tiny moment of thought that there was absolutely no freedom in life. _Something_ was running this world, ruling her fate, and it wasn't her. She was not in control. There was nothing she could do but go along with her destiny like a good little slave.

_No._ A hiss, dark and angry and powerful. **_No._**

Redsplash frowned, startled by this rebellion in her mind. She'd already decided. She knew what she had to do, what she was meant to do.

**_NO!_** _I was a slave once, I **won't** be again. _She snarled involuntarily, feeling the cool of defiance drown out the heat of wrath. She would _not_ be a toy, not be a slave.

It occurred to her that by changing fate she might destroy the world, but, at the moment, it felt to her that it was _her_ world to destroy. She'd been fate's plaything long enough…let it be hers now.

She stood slowly and looked around the battlefield. There was very little battle left. Off in the distance, silhouettes of hares retreated. It seemed the great army of Salamandastron was fleeing, having seen their leader die. She wondered where they were going.

Her eyes fell on Sade. She noticed, for the first time, that he was looking at her again. His eyes were barely open, and his gaze was slightly dulled, but he was looking directly at her.

"C'mon, Sade," she breathed, "what d'you say we pay our friend the sober squirrel a visit?

…

Root had just finished an emergency amputation on a thankfully unconscious rat when Redsplash entered the tent. She was carrying Sade and dripping blood. It was not immediately apparent if the blood was hers or someone else's. The only truly visible thing was the axe sticking out of Sade's chest.

Redsplash seemed to take an eternity looking around, and then lurched her way over to one of the empty cots. And, standing over it, she collapsed, going completely limp.

Sade fell and hit the cot hard, his eyes rolling and his mouth clamping shut.

Root bounded over the groaning wounded and the silent corpses, nearly ramming straight into Redsplash who, despite her collapse, was still awake. She stared blearily up at the tent canopy and then held a paw up, considering it. It was drenched in blood.

"Red," Root snapped, slapping at her face in an effort to catch her attention. "Red, what's wrong with you?"

She looked at him as if trying to remember who he was. Her eyes narrowed. "Red_splash_." She argued crossly.

"Right, yes, Red_splash_." Root agreed, viciously annoyed. _But if she can still be an idiot, it means she's not dead, at least. _"What's wrong?"

"Damn bunny had a mace." Redsplash told him. "Got my ribs. Can see the bone."

Root glanced down at her ribs and found her armor ripped and her skin torn. But the wound wasn't deep enough to show bone. "There's no bone, Redsplash."

She looked at him, her eyes focusing slowly, an expression of shocked confusion on her face. "Why…why's _that_ changing?" She murmured and then, promptly, lost consciousness.

Root snarled in frustration and grabbed the first blood-free creature he saw. "Watch _her_." He snapped, and the fox glanced uneasily at the otter. "I don't know how bad the wound is, but you'd better _fix_ it."

The fox seemed about to refuse when he caught a glimpse of something over Root's shoulder. He yelped and promptly went to work lifting Redsplash off the floor.

Root turned to see Sade relaxing back against the cot, his eyes closed and lips tight. Whatever he'd just done, it was now costing him severely.

Root moved to crouch beside the otter's cot, staring at the axe. From the look of it, it had missed his heart. Well, it would have had to. Otherwise Sade would be dead.

Root's eyes flicked up to Sade's, and the squirrel saw a tiny stream of blood leaking from the otter's mouth. "What's that?" He demanded harshly. "Did you take a bite out of a sword?"

Sade's jaw unclenched and Root found himself gaping at the ruins of what had once been the otter's lip. Apparently, the otter had been biting it, and had nearly bitten straight through it.

Root winced and called two other healers over. They insisted quite heartily that, if they left their posts, vermin would die. Root insisted just as energetically that he didn't give a damn. They came.

He ordered one over to check on Redsplash and told the other to go get one of the mixes that would knock Sade out. After all, that axe was going to have to come out, and that kind of pain added to what he was already experiencing…well, Root wasn't at all sure Sade could even survive it.

But, when the healer returned, Sade refused to drink it. Not just refused to drink it, he managed to knock the drink out of the stoat's paws and didn't seem at all to care as it the ground soaked it up.

"What are you _doing_?" Root roared at him. "That would've sent you to _sleep_."

Sade paused and then looked up at the squirrel. His usually dulled voice was sharp and quiet. "I sleep," he said, "I die."

"You do _not_!" Root growled. "Look, I know what I'm doing."

"So do I." Sade replied.

"Look, mate, even if it does kill you, death'll be easier than this will." The stoat shared his opinion, glancing nervously at the axe.

"Don't give him _ideas_!" Root snarled.

Sade's eyes closed and his jaw tensed for a moment. Finally, he spoke. "I cannot die. I was ordered not to."

Root cast a look in the direction of Redsplash, who was currently hidden behind the fox and the weasel he'd sent to help her. "Well, at least _one_ of you is growing some brains." He snapped before turning back to Sade. "Look, sleep won't kill you, and if you're not asleep when we pull that out…well, it won't be any fun for you, you know."

Sade stared at him and then, slowly, started to grin. With his maimed and still-bleeding lip, it looked, at best, demonic. "Just pull it out, squirrel." He commanded in that sharp and soft voice of his.

"It could _kill_ you." Root snarled.

"I won't let it." Sade replied. "And if you do not do it now, I will have to pull it out myself."

Root stared at him. _Why does this whole thing just **scream** of masochism?_

Sade's eyes shut slowly, peacefully, and his mouth closed now on his upper lip. There wasn't enough skin left whole on his upper lip to get a grip on with his teeth.

Root, who had been cutting off a limb fifteen minutes ago, found himself shuddering at the thought of pulling out this axe. He paused, took a breath, and consoled himself. _At least it's not you with the axe in your chest... These idiots ask too much of you._

"I'm gonna pull it out on the count of three, a'right, Sade?" No answer, not even a twitch.

"One…" Root counted, gripping the axe where it would be easiest to yank out. He took a deep, steadying breath. Knowing that Sade would unintentionally tense up right before three was called, he had to pull it out before that. So…two it was, then.

"Two!" He _tugged_. There was a moment of resistance, as he knew there would be, and then the weapon slithered out easily. The squirrel dropped it on the sand and turned his gaze on Sade.

The otter wasn't moving.

At all.

…

_Redsplash_ _was hanging between two very different worlds. Dreams and reality, she supposed. She knew only that she'd been kicked out of dreams rather quickly. The mouse had been standing there, staring at her as if he couldn't quite decide if she were real or not._

"_Get her out of here, mouse." Fatefiend's voice echoed from far away, but the anger in it was still clearly evident._

_The mouse looked up, confused, and Redsplash felt something like a kick to her stomach. She went flying backwards and had ended up here._

_Waiting to wake up._ _She knew she **should** be awake. She wasn't, after all, still really asleep. But something was holding her here. Making her stay. Idly, she wondered if it was that drink Sade had given her, but what sense would that make?_

_She could hear someone talking._

"_How long have they been asleep?"_

"_Six days now."_

"_You say they both fainted at the same time?"_

"_Yes. Pretty much. I think Redsplash was out before Sade, but within the same minute."_

"_Any idea what happened?"_

"_None._ _But whatever it is, it's healing them."_

"_What?"_

"_Oh, like **I** have any idea how that works. It just is."_

"_Squirrel…"_

"_Put the claws away, cat. And, for my sake, **wash** them. I'm sure you're awfully proud of yourself for killing all those hares with them, but it's just **sick**."_

Redsplash woke up laughing.

…

"_Sade!"_

"_Sade! Sade, you'll be fine. It's just a little scratch! I promise!"_

…

"_Oy._ _Otter. Me and you need to have ourselves a talk."_

"_I'm guarding that otter of yours. Let me go."_

"_Oh, I know very **well** what you're doing! And if you were just guarding Redsplash, I'd have no problem with it! But you've got some strange concept of justice those psychotic **Elders** of yours forced down your throat and you've **convinced** yourself you've got to-"_

"_Silence._ _You cannot speak of them that way."_

"_Oh, I can't? And why not? Because if I say it aloud you'll realize you've been thinking it all this time?"_

…

"_Most your age fear death."_

"_Death has never worried me. Life is far more dangerous."_

…

"_What did they tell you?"_

"_That I am a demon and that I will destroy the world."_

…

"_I do not think we should trust him. His father-"_

"_Was his father._ _They are completely different creatures. We kept this one under strict watch. He is completely loyal to us."_

"_You know what **she** says about it."_

"_What? That you can never completely break someone to a system when they are as young as he is? She is insane and senile. It will work."_

"_But what if it fails?"_

"_Hopefully Havoak will be back by then. He will authorize his execution."_

"_Are you sure? They were very close."_

"_If we fail, Havoak will have him killed for his own good. Minds break..."_

…

"_What do you know of your father?"_

"_That he was a disgrace and a runaway."_

…

"_Have you threatened her?"_

"_Yes. Does that anger you?"_

"_Why would it? She is just my mother."_

"_Some would be angered."_

"_Some would thank their mothers for being born."_

"_You would not?"_

"_I would not."_

…

"_Does it not anger you that they killed your father?"_

"_No. He had to die. He was a betrayer."_

"_Do you know how they killed him?"_

"_There is only one way to execute a traitor. I know it."_

"_And do you know how long he lasted?"_

"_Seventeen days. The longest anyone ever has."_

…

"_Do you know that, if he had not left you behind, the Stone would belong to you?"_

"_Yes."_

…

_A ferret sat on stone steps, leaning against a gate. In his paws, he held the necklace from which hung the Stone of Khalidian, and he looked at it in a curious, detached sort of way. Slowly, he looked up, and his gaze met Sade's._

"_This should've been yours, shouldn't it?" The ferret asked, holding up the Stone. "Not Red's."_

"_It belonged to Havoak." Sade replied, standing several paces away in very tall, very thick grass._

_The ferret sighed, and he stood up, walking slowly towards him, the necklace still dangling from his paw. "I know very well who it **belonged** to. But that's not what I asked. It was meant for you at birth."_

"_I lost all claim to it when my father betrayed us."_

_The ferret stopped directly in front of him, looking at him thoughtfully, regretfully. "But that other one, Havoak, he was going to give it to you, wasn't he? It was supposed to go to you if he died, not to Red."_

_Sade_ _nodded slowly. "That was the original plan."_

"_Strange thing about Red."_ _The ferret grinned, though his eyes weren't at all happy. "She always manages to ruin everyone elses' lives without making hers any better."_

_Sade_ _stared at him, refusing to let his gaze drop to the Stone that had passed him by twice._

"_My name is Fatefiend." The ferret told him suddenly. "We've met before."_

_Sade's_ _eyes narrowed and then, slowly, he nodded. "You're the one that started this whole thing."_

"'_fraid I did." Fatefiend agreed. "And I won't apologize. Better to live a day feeling pain than a thousand feeling nothing."_

_Sade's_ _eyes narrowed as he felt something **tugging** at him. The ferret turned, as if hearing someone calling, and his gaze settled on the gate. A grimace of distaste twisted the ferret's mouth._

_Sade_ _brushed past him, following the insistent tug, and came to a stop on the grass right before the stone steps. The ferret had somehow managed to move without moving and was now sitting where he had been before, on the steps, still holding the necklace, still looking dejected and almost nostalgic._

"_How did you…" Sade looked over his shoulder in confusion, but the ferret had really managed to disappear and reappear. There were no twins or tricks._

"_Benefit o' bein' dead, mate."_ _Fatefiend told him quietly, eyes glued on the necklace._

_Sade_ _felt the tug again, though this time it was much more like a voice calling his name. A face seemed to shimmer on the wood. **Havoak**, he thought._

_His paw reached out-_

"_You go in there, mate, and there's no comin' back." The ferret warned softly. "Not that you haven't earned the rest. But I won't have you goin' in without knowin' what you're gettin' yourself into."_

_Sade_ _froze. "If I go…I will be dead?"_

"_You're dead enough now as it is." Fatefiend retorted. "But you go in there, an' there's no hope of recovery."_

_Sade_ _stared at the gate, listened to Havoak and death calling him, and then, slowly, let his paw drop. He let out the breath he'd been holding and sat carefully on the ancient steps._

"_How long will I have to wait here?" He asked, knowing he couldn't wake himself up. He had already tried._

"_Dunno, mate. 's_ _not up to me." The ferret looked up, staring at him. "An' time doesn't move like it should out here. Could be a few minutes down there and seem like a few seasons up here. Could be the opposite."_

"_Where am I?" Sade asked, not recognizing this place from any of the stories he'd heard about near-death experiences. "I do not know this place."_

"_Ah, well, it's a newly constructed gate. So you shouldn't know it. There's only been three here before you. One of which you know, one of which you **will** know, and one of which…" The ferret frowned lightly, as if unsure if he should reveal any more. He shrugged lightly. "One of which is your brother."_

_Sade_ _stared at him. "How can it be newly constructed if my brother was here? One of your time's lapses?"_

_Fatefiend looked momentarily confused and then shook his head. "Nah, mate, wrong brother."_

_Sade's_ _eyes widened. "I have another brother?"_

_Fatefiend hesitated and then nodded slowly. "Yes. He's-"_

…

Sade's paw shot out and grabbed hold of the creature leaning over him, Root. "Put me to sleep." He ordered. "Now."

"From one extreme to the next with you, I swear." Root snapped, carefully disengaging himself from Sade's grip. "And I _can't_ put you to sleep. We're out of the potion to do so."

"Then hit me over the head." Sade demanded, ignoring the look of shock on the squirrel's face. "I have to go back."

"Back where?" A voice asked.

Sade twisted his head to see Redsplash propped up on several pillows, on a cot right next to his. She seemed pale and weak, but still very much the arrogant creature she was. "Back to that ferret." Sade answered.

"What ferret?" Redsplash's eyes flickered with too many emotions to count. The most prominent seemed to be pain.

"Fatefiend."

Redsplash hissed and pointedly settled back against the pillows. "If he won't talk to me, he doesn't get the _chance_ to talk to you. Stay awake with me, Sade."

Sade's upper lip drew back in a snarl. "As nice as it would be to revel in your company, Carrier, I have just been informed of something rather important and would like to get back to it."

"Did ya hear that, Root?" Redsplash inquired, her voice strained but pointed. "_Sarcasm_. From the emotionless wonder."

"Oh, I heard." Root replied, though he seemed much less amused. "And I think that, since he _did_ take an axe to the _chest_ for you, you ought to be a bit more polite to him."

Redsplash frowned at Root in disgust. "_Fine_," she grumped, "_take_ his side. Not like I'm seriously wounded, too, or anything. Not like I was attacked by a _mace_ or anything."

"That," Root retorted, "was entirely the fault of your _own_ stupidity."

"Oh, an' him jumpin' in front of an axe isn't stupid?"

"There's a difference between noble stupidity and just plain idiotic stupidity." Root informed her. "And Sade, we have nothing to put you to sleep _with_. There's nothing I can do."

"Hit me," Sade snapped, "over the head."

"And risk you going into another coma?" Root demanded briskly. "No, thank you, I don't think I will. I have other idiots to look after." And he bounded off, bushy tail waving.

"I hate it when he thinks he has a purpose in life." Redsplash told Sade darkly. "Y'know," she added thoughtfully, "I think he's been drinking again."

Sade ignored her.

"So…" Redsplash started. "What did my old buddy Fatefiend have to say?"

"He said I had a brother."

Redsplash paused for a long time, apparently thinking this over. "I'm guessing you weren't aware of this?"

"Not that I had two." Sade's eyes closed. "I wonder if he's alive."

"I never had any siblings." Redsplash told him. He glanced at her, but she had suddenly discovered the ceiling and seemed entranced by it. "Never."

He wondered why she was lying.

…

"They're awake, then?" Darkclaw demanded as soon as Root walked in. "Both of them?"

Root scowled at him, a bit upset by the fact that the wildcat already knew the news he'd come all the way across camp to tell him. "Yes."

Darkclaw nodded and frowned lightly, looking thoughtful. "And how is Sade?"

Root shot him a suspicious look, wondering if the wildcat already knew _this_ little tidbit as well. Finally, deciding he didn't, the squirrel shrugged. "I honestly don't know."

The cat's eyes narrowed warningly. Root noticed that the longer Darkclaw sat in a position of power, the crankier he got. "What do you mean you don't know? Were you not just in there speaking with him?"

"Ya caught me, cat. I was." Root, in response to Darkclaw's growing irritability, had found himself becoming more and more sarcastic and, sometimes, blatantly defiant. He supposed, to his infinite horror, it was Redsplash's charm rubbing off on him.

Darkclaw growled. Not with very much anger, or even real annoyance, but just enough to remind Root who, out of the both of them, was the flesh-eating maniac.

Root sighed and sat down on the chair facing Darkclaw's. "I'm not quite sure the otter was in a coma." He admitted finally.

"What?"

"Well, I mean, he was unresponsive and everything, but I'm not sure why." Root paused, trying to arrange his tired thoughts.

"Perhaps it has something to do with a rather large axe suddenly splitting him open." Darkclaw suggested darkly.

"Doesn't explain the healing."

"What healing?"

"Seems to me that all the energy Sade would've used if he'd been runnin' around bein' his stupid self went to work on that gaping hole in his chest." Root informed him dryly. "But bodies don't just distribute their energy like that. There's no way you can consciously decide to sleep for seven days and use all your strength to recuperate. It's not _possible_."

"Tell me, squirrel, is it possible for an otter to escape the Nameless One twice?" Darkclaw inquired idly, examining his freshly sharpened claws.

"No." Root frowned. "Yes." He corrected himself. "But what does that-"

"Become seasick?"

"What does th-"

"Blindly follow a little rock like it's a god?"

"Just because some have no sense of-"

"Kill a badger?"

Root glared at him. "Whatever witty point you're trying to make, _get to it_. I have lives to look after, you know."

Darkclaw grinned with no real humor. "Stop assuming anything about otters, squirrel. It seems their entire species has descended into madness."

…

_Sade_ _was standing in a mist-covered graveyard, waiting. He didn't know who he was waiting for, only that he would continue waiting until the world died, if he had to. Finally, a patch of mist seemed to solidify into the basic outline of a ferret and then brush away, leaving behind Fatefiend lounging against a tall, winged statue._

"'_ello."_ _The ferret greeted._

_Sade_ _nodded to him, approaching slowly. "My brother-"_

"_Can't talk about him, mate."_ _Fatefiend broke in, his tone warning. "Not allowed to. Turns out, you might meet him someday. Can't tamper with the future."_

_Sade_ _stared at him. "Tell me." He commanded._

"_Don't have to, mate." The ferret replied and hopped nimbly up onto a headstone, balancing perfectly. "An' don't start threatenin' me or anythin', cuz you'll just be wasting your time and my patience. Besides, we have more important things to talk about than your brother."_

"_What if I refuse to believe there is anything more important?"_

"_Then you'll have to trust in **my** believing there is." The ferret snorted and jumped to the next headstone, followed by the next. He moved around Sade in a large, meandering circle, his paws never seeming to miss a step. His balance was far too perfect for a living creature. "Though, I know you won't. You don't know how to trust. They'd never've thought to teach you **that**."_

_Sade's_ _eyes narrowed slightly, and he refused to turn to keep up with the ferret. Let his back be exposed. What could a phantom do to him in this world of nightmares and dreams? "What are you talking about?"_

_The ferret froze, one footpaw lifted, prepared to jump. Slowly, he brought the foot back and stood on the headstone. "Y'know, I've never been much of a fan of merciless slaughter. Too, I dunno, **artless** for me. Not to mention I get all weak and fainty when blood's split." The shadowy glimmer in the ferret's eyes made Sade doubt **very** much the sight of blood disturbed him. "But I don't think I'd mind slaughterin' your tribe."_

_Sade's_ _paws clenched into fists and his lip drew back in a snarl._

_The ferret looked at him in disgust. "Look at you, mate. You know you hate them, and still you'd fight me to keep them safe. Their hooks go deep, don't they? I'm not sure you'll ever be free."_

"_I am free."_

_Fatefiend laughed. "None who would die for someone or something simply because they are **told** to will ever be free. Doesn't matter what they tell you, mate. A piece of land or a leader's life isn't worth your freedom. Protect 'em, die for 'em, sacrifice for 'em, but don't **ever **let them tell you that you **have** to." He looked like he had a very bad taste in the back of his throat and was trying not to gag. "Blind loyalty is just slavery with a pretty name."_

"_And a creature with no loyalties has no soul."_

"_Oh, is **that** what they told you?" Fatefiend murmured, dropping off the headstone and stalking closer, his posture screaming of repulsion and wrath. "That we have no souls? Does that make it easier to kill us, Sade? Look at me. I'm **dead**. This is not my body. Bodies **bleed**." The ferret held out a paw and a dagger materialized in it. Without pausing to blink, the ferret slashed his arm from wrist to elbow. The skin stitched closed immediately. Fatefiend's eyes closed and the dagger disappeared. "I had no loyalties to realm or authority while I was alive, Sade. If this is not my soul you see before you, then what **is** it?"_

"_You were loyal to the Carrier."_

_Fatefiend snorted, laughed. "Yes." He answered. "Yes, but she was my friend. It is a different kind of loyalty, when it is shared. Do you honestly think any of those bastard Elders of yours would give their lives for **you**?"_

"_Why would they?" Sade inquired. "They are superior. Their value is different."_

_The ferret laughed again. "Oh, yes," he agreed, somewhat out of breath. "Old, **disgusting**, tyrannical bastards are **so** much your superior."_

_Sade_ _frowned. "Well, if they're not, then who is?"_

"_Who could be?" The ferret retorted. "You live, you die. Who doesn't?" The ferret paused and then, lunging lightly back up on the headstone, stared down at the mist-covered ground. "You know, you can't stay where you are."_

"_What do you mean?"_

"_Caught between what the Elders wanted you to be, and what you were actually **supposed** to be." The ferret sighed, as if the world on his shoulders was crushing his lungs. "If things weren't happening so damn fast, I'd just leave it as it is. Red's an idiot, but she's a decent idiot. You'd've turned out alright in the end. But my bastard father has too many troops and too many brilliant plans. We have no time for you to go gallivanting around for a few seasons and come to emotional health naturally."_

"_You are not making any sense."_

_Fatefiend stared down at him from the headstone. "Am I not? Well…I suppose you wouldn't understand." He frowned, looking down at the otter very intently, as if searching for something in particular. "Sade, you're too damn confused. You've managed to unlock that deep, dark place you stashed your emotions, and you can't put 'em back in. You think you're a failure because the Elders were too damn stupid to make a monster out of you."_

_Sade_ _stared._

"_So, I've come to fix your mind." The ferret stepped down cautiously off the headstone._

"_You can do that? You can make me how I was?"_

_Fatefiend sighed. "No. Even if I could, I would not. But I can turn you into what you should be…instead of this hybrid, middle-ground, torn-in-half disaster that you are now."_

"_So instead of making these emotions go away…you would do the opposite?"_

"_No help for it, mate. They're out now. Won't fit back in their tiny box. But I can give you control over them. If you can understand what you're feeling, it's much easier to ignore." The ferret winced. "Though it will take awhile to adjust. Perhaps hours, perhaps days."_

_Sade_ _frowned. "Is there nothing else to do?"_

"_Well, it's gonna happen one way or the other. Mousie wants to let time do its job, but he still owes me from that **last** bet he lost." Fatefiend shrugged. "So you can either feel like you do, and much, much worse, for a few seasons, or you can get it over quick."_

_Sade_ _waved a paw dismissively. "I don't have seasons for this nonsense."_

_Fatefiend nodded solemnly. He lifted his paws, and they began to glow white. "I'm not gonna lie to you like everyone else, mate. This is really gonna hurt."_

_A jolt like a lightening bolt slammed into him and Sade felt himself spiraling inwards, surrounded by white light that burned his eyes. It took him several long seconds to realize he was somehow in his own mind, yet getting vague hints of someone else's thoughts. From the blatant disgust at the orderliness of his mind, Sade knew it was Fatefiend. And the long pause over his recent memories, most notably the ones involving the Carrier, only reinforced his belief._

_Finally, strangely, he found himself facing a heavy metal cage. A creature lay curled up in the corner of the cage, shivering violently and leaking blood. Sade blinked and the creature lunged forward, screaming. The entire cage gleamed with blood. He blinked again and there was laughter, and a strange bluish glow lighting the place._

"_What **is** it?" Sade heard himself asking._

"_It's **you**." Fatefiend retorted, suddenly appearing beside him. "Or part of you, anyway."_

"_It can't be." Sade denied as he blinked once more and the creature began shrieking and tearing its own flesh off._

"_Well, it's rather insane at the moment." Fatefiend told him. "I'll do what I can. Stay there."_

_The ferret approached the cage quickly, effortlessly, though his paws touched no ground. "Oy, you." The ferret snapped, and the creature looked up, laughing rather maniacally. "I need you to calm yourself. Now."_

_The creature broke off mid-cackle and yawned, sprawling out on the cold metal and blinking tiredly._

_Fatefiend stared at in, disturbed. "You're a rather suggestible character, aren't you?" He inquired. "Jump like a monkey."_

_The creature immediately began hopping around rather excitedly. Fatefiend started laughing and turned to point out the hilarity of it all to Sade, only to find Sade staring at him stonily. Immediately, Fatefiend cleared his throat and turned back to the creature, looking rather guilty._

"_**Calm**."_ _He ordered and the creature slowed, stopped jumping, and then just sat, staring. "Good." Fatefiend muttered and turned back to Sade. "Now, look, Sade, it's only so completely insane cuz you've left it locked in there for so long."_

"_I have not."_

_Fatefiend stared at him, an eyebrow raised. "Yes. You **have**." He argued. "Now, you need to let him go."_

_Sade_ _began to get the most curiously queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He wondered what it was. The creature in the cage began shrieking as if its guts were being pulled out by a pitchfork made of acid._

_Fatefiend waved a paw, and both the queasy feeling and the creature quieted. "Well, at least you can feel **something**." He murmured. "Now, Sade, let him out."_

"_How do I-"_

"_I can't help you with that. I don't know how you locked it in. It's up to you to let him out."_

_Sade_ _frowned and looked at the creature. Did he really want that **thing** free? The creature looked back at him. It was revolting, disgusting, pathetic._

_But it was **him**._

_Sade_ _froze at the thought, wondering where it had come from. Wherever it came from, it brought fire._

_**It's mine. It's ME. No one should have the authority to cage it, not even myself.**_

_The cage burst open, and the creature sprang out, lunged, and slammed straight into Sade's mind._

…

Sade decided, when he woke, that he despised cages. Not just despised them. He _hated_ them. _Loathed_ them. A raging, burning storm of fire was turning his guts to ashes, all because of his overwhelming hatred of cages.

Sade had never felt hatred before.

He found that he liked it very much.

He was up and off the cot before anyone even noticed. The first weapon he found, he took. Dim objections echoed in the back of his mind, but he didn't pause to figure out who was calling him. He had _cages_ to **_destroy_**.

The prisoners who he hadn't tortured to death were still alive, still **_caged_**. They stared at him in abject horror and bitter hatred. But they didn't hate him half as much as he hated the cages that held them.

He tore the cages apart with the axe he'd grabbed and the mice and squirrels gaped in confusion. Finally, one leapt out and latched onto him, digging its teeth into his neck, seeking vengeance.

The squirrel went flying when Redsplash delivered a rather spectacular kick to its furry stomach. "_Ingrate_!" She accused.

"Run, my squirrely friends!" Root bellowed, weaving about drunkenly. "The mad one has set you free! Take advantage of it, while the insanity lasts!"

Most of the creatures took off at run. A few stayed where they were, eyeing Sade in a way that hinted they wanted their revenge for his cub killing spree.

Sade ignored those that stayed where they were, too caught up in watching the others run away. _Escape_. His mind hissed. _No more cages. Never. Not for you, not for me. **Never** again._

Then the first of Darkclaw's dedicated minions tackled the slowest of Sade's liberated mob.

Something, a different kind of fire, exploded in Sade's throat, and he was off again. His axe broke the skull of the six or so minions that _dared_ try to halt freedom.

The vermin reacted quickly and fled for safety. Sade caught the slowest one and punched him in the face until brains and blood splattered all the way up to his shoulder. He could feel himself screaming out gibberish, words that didn't go together, sentences that did not make sense. His mind reeled drunkenly, feasting on this choking fire that burned in his stomach and throat. Whatever it was that he had done, it…it was killing him.

"What are you doing?" A voice…_curious, concerned_…"There's no point in beating a corpse."

Sade dropped the dead body and turned his gaze on Redsplash. She stared at him, eyebrows raised and doubtful grimace on her face. For a moment, she was there, standing, staring, and then, with a flicker, she was gone.

Everything was dark. The sun had burned itself to ash, and there was no moon. Blindness hit like the axe had, and his knees collapsed, made not of muscle but of water. Then, slowly, something flared. A light, a fire, a pale shadow.

He look to it, found it writhing where Redsplash had been standing. Then, all over the landscape, more of these bizarre lights. Some were red, some yellow, some a queasy yellow-green, some flared briefly before fading out…the dying in the healer's tent.

He was flung upwards as if the earth had rejected him and he found himself staring down at all the creatures of the world, represented by these frail lights. They danced, they writhed, they faded, and they burned. The entire world was darkness that tried to worm its way into the lights that warred, weakly, against it.

It seemed so hopeless, so stupid. The darkness always won in the end. The lights only existed so that the darkness could play with them. Black fire devouring white flesh…

And then, with a deep impact that was _felt_ rather than heard, a beacon flared up. Tinted blue with tiny veins of black and white, it lit up like a star. And, slowly, in answer, a dozen or so more flared. The darkness boiled and hissed, drawing away. The space between the darkness and the beacons filled with blood…and…more.

One space was filled with tears, one with betrayal, one with hope, one with redemption…and, one, with laughter. Laughter and defiance and hopelessness. Sade recognized the _feel_ of it all, and realized who this was. It was him. But him if he had never been ruined by the Elders, him if he had been given freedom instead of shame.

His brother, then.

"_This is the world, Sade. Some say your destiny is to destroy it."_

Sade pushed the voice away, concentrated on the images, and then felt himself falling. He hit something that wasn't quite there, and felt sand in his mouth. A red-tinged blackness was crouched over him, and, if he squinted, he could see a blue-veined blackness where the heart should be.

He realized he had seen that color blue before…

"_Sade_!" A voice…_irritated, irrational_…"Wake _up_!"

Sade groaned weakly, marveling at such average reactions, and opened his eyes. He spat out sand. "I was not asleep."

"Then what were you _doing_?" Redsplash demanded.

Sade looked up at her and felt a darkness bubbling in his throat. Half a second later, it burst out of him, and he realized that he was laughing. _Laughing…I'm…laughing. Strange…_

He decided, quite abruptly, that he really didn't like it. This laughter made his ribs hurt and made him feel hollow, addicted, as if the only thing that mattered was this laughter. As if, somehow, it was going to make everything better. He stopped laughing and shoved the feeling away.

"I was hallucinating." He answered, his voice blank, emotionless. _Normalcy…I think I might have missed you…_

"Right." She looked at him suspiciously. "Well…I need you to help me with something…"

…

It Sade about an hour to recruit two hundred or so of the vermin, have them tie together four of the wagons in a square, and load the badger upon it. He then tied four long ropes to the first two wagons and divided the vermin up until there was an equal number on each rope. When Redsplash arrived, they had already tested to see if they could pull it, and found that they could.

Redsplash leapt up until the platform the wagon made and began pulling the arrows out of the badger. Sade disappeared, dismissed, and Redsplash ordered the vermin in a sickeningly familiar direction.

…

Root found her at sunset. She was sticking the arrows that were still stained red from the badger's blood in the dirt that covered his body. The squirrel found himself completely confused by this turn of events.

"You bury your victim by your best friend?" He asked.

She looked up at him, dirty and solemn. "I've decided, Root." She spoke these words as if they were _important_, as if they would change the world's spin.

"Decided what?" He asked warily.

"Decided what I want." She told him, crossing the last two arrows over what he supposed would be the badger's face.

"And what do you want, Red? Another massacre?" _Because I don't think I have another one in me._

She could at him curiously and moved to lean against a large rock that had been placed over Fatefiend's grave. Her back was to Root, facing away from the grave, towards the sunset and the sea. "No, Root. That's not what I want."

_She didn't yell at me for calling her Red. What does **that** mean?_ "What _is_ it, then? What _do_ you want?"

She sighed heavily, and scowled. It looked like she was afraid of being called stupid if she answered. "Peace…" She paused. "I've decided I want peace."

_Strange to wish for peace while leaning against your friend's headstone and covered in the dirt of his killer's grave._

Peace…it was what he had wanted all along. But Redsplash seemed to have a special sort of magnetism to violence. He wondered if she really thought she would ever find peace after slaughtering the badger lord. "And where, Redsplash, d'you think we could find this peace?"

She sighed again, though wistfully instead of resentfully. "Redwall, Root. Where else?"

Root shivered suddenly, and he did not know why. "Redwall, Red? Do you think they would let us in?"

Redsplash glanced at him, and smiled an impish, defiant little smile. "Well, Root, if they don't, we could always start our _own_ abbey. Y'know, make our own peace. Might be better that way, anyway, except I really wanna try their food."

Root snorted. "We could always break in and kidnap their cook."

Redsplash grinned. "Y'know…that's not a bad idea."

"No, Red. I was _joking_! It is a _very bad idea_!"

Redsplash smiled that same wicked grin and leapt to her feet. "Let's go, Root. The dead aren't as good as company as they used to be. I much prefer the living now."

…

They found Sade standing in the shadow of a tent. His fur was somehow darker, as if he had re-dyed it blacker than it had been before, and the blue designs were completely different. They seemed sharper now, more challenging and destructive. He informed them proudly that the one over his heart meant defiance and the one around his left eye meant resurrection. It seemed to both Root and Redsplash that he was completely different now, if only in small, strange ways.

He had stolen a long, black, hooded robe from the stores Aysini had left behind and more of the blue symbols slithered across the fabric. His eyes were bloodshot, and his shirt, pants, and boots were bloodstained. He looked, altogether, wonderfully demonic.

Redsplash told him that she was very proud of him. Root told him to stay away from cubs or risk scaring their hearts into stopping. Sade only stared, smirking so lightly it was almost impossible to notice.

They stole from the kitchens and pillaged the abandoned tents. By the time they were satisfied, they were all rich in resources, carrying enough food to feed them all the way to Redwall and back. Naturally, Sade carried the heaviest pack, Root carried the second heaviest, and Redsplash carried no pack at all. She was, she informed them, their leader and, as such, needed to be free to run away and abandon them at the slightest hint of danger.

Root was not amused, and it was impossible to tell if Sade was.

The three of them stopped outside of Darkclaw's tent for a moment to set it on fire and then took off running in the direction Redsplash had guessed would take them to Redwall.

The roaring of an enraged wildcat provided the perfect soundtrack to their getaway.

…

_Fatefiend stared down at the image the birdbath projected. He didn't know what to make of it, couldn't understand the underlying meaning of it all._

"_Perhaps you should just be glad the world isn't completely without hope." The mouse pointed out tiredly as he materialized beside him._

_Fatefiend glanced up at him, noting the bloodshot eyes and the fatigued smile. "Maybe it is." The ferret argued. "How can you be so sure? Maybe this is just a delay. Just an interruption."_

"_Have faith, Fatefiend. After all, you were the one arguing all along that she wasn't as bad as we all thought she was. Why aren't you out telling us you told us so?"_

_Fatefiend scowled, turning away. He didn't know why he was acting the way he was. He wasn't at all sure if he even had a reason._

"_Maybe you feel guilty."_

_Fatefiend snorted. "Guilty? Guilty for what?"_

"_For losing faith in her."_ _The mouse sighed. "In the end, you knew she'd destroy the world. In the end, you were just as damning as the rest of us. But it was different for the rest of us. We never claimed to be her friend."_

"_I am **still** her friend, mouse." Fatefiend snarled._

_The mouse looked away, staring off at the sun and wondering if it was rising or setting. "That's the thing about death, Fatefiend. The only friendships that survive it at the ones that are never questioned, never challenged. You abandoned her, or she drove you away. Can't you feel the link dying?"_

_Fatefiend turned on him, snarling. The mouse glanced up at him, unconcerned. "It's not true." Fatefiend accused. "I will always be her friend."_

"_Then why won't you talk to her anymore?"_

"_Because friends fight._ _We spent more of our time fighting than getting along. You know that."_

"_Aye, I know that. But I also know to fight someone, you have to acknowledge their existence." The mouse pointed out._

_Fatefiend stared at him angrily and then disappeared, reappearing sitting on the stone steps. He held his head in his paws and then looked up. "So maybe our friendship is dying, mouse. Does that make you happy? You never liked her. You barely tolerate me. I was the only chance she had of getting in here. Does it make you happy to know I failed?"_

"_You know it doesn't, ferret. And if it helps, she had no chance of getting in here. The usual rules don't apply to hellions like her."_

_Fatefiend looked away. "I'm not sure the world is worth this, mouse. I'm not sure I give a damn anymore."_

_The mouse stared at him and then looked around. "Cheer up, Fatefiend. All is not lost, after all. Look around. Last time you were here, this place showed you a graveyard. Look at it now."_

_The ferret looked around reluctantly._

_The long, wild grass was shorter now, tamer. The stone and gate were less cracked, still ancient but taken care of instead of abandoned. The bowl had turned into a birdbath, and the graves had disappeared entirely. A sun was half over the horizon, but it was impossible to tell if it was rising or setting. The entire place seemed sleepy, disconnected. He assumed it meant that there was nothing going on in the world of the living that significantly affected the world of the dead._

_No apocalypse, then. But no resurrection, either._

_The mouse was looking down at the birdbath. "This is an interesting picture." He observed._

_Fatefiend moved to stare down at the image. It was frozen, the only time he has seen it do so without him ordering it to, and the reflection it was showing was…was damnably mystifying._

_It showed Root, Redsplash, and Sade moving forward, away from the vermin camps. Smoke filled the air behind them from their recent fire, and moonlight blazed down on them as if specifically targeting these three._

_Root was on the left, beside Redsplash, a doubtful sideways glance pointed at Redsplash. He had a flask out and was drinking from it so that it obscured half his face. His free paw was up in a strange kind of dismissive gesture, as if Redsplash had just done or said something he didn't think was funny at all._

_Sade_ _was on Redsplash's other side, and he looked especially demonic. Blue symbols blazed out oddly, glowing with the moon's light, and he carried a throwing dagger in his paw. His gaze was over Redsplash's shoulder, centered on a shadow behind them. His swords were strapped to his back, along with a heavy pack, and he did not seem to be having any trouble moving freely. To Fatefiend and the mouse, who could sense the emotions Sade hid, the madness within him disgusted the both of them._

_And, behind them all, was the wildcat. All broadswords and bared fangs, he was stalking them. He was what Sade had been looking at, and he was clearly going to be the target of Sade's knife. But, just as clearly, the wildcat did not really intend to attack, at least not dangerously. At worst, he would maim. His interests did not involve death. The three of them were valued too highly for slaughter._

_And, in the center of it all, was Redsplash. The catalyst. The badger-killer. She was grinning impishly at Root, and something in her posture suggested she was about to go for Root's flask._

_Fatefiend stared at her and felt lost. This was the creature who was capable of being both monster and champion and, instead, was neither. This was the otter who could save the world or damn it but was only interested in using it. How could he ever have called her friend?_

_And why couldn't he still?_

"_Don't worry, Fatefiend. She doesn't even feel it."_

_Fatefiend bared his teeth and growled, splashing the water to destroy the image. "How would you know?"_

"_Because she's not the only one who's been abandoned."_

_Fatefiend concentrated carefully, choking these useless feelings until they faded to nothing. Slowly, he looked up at the mouse and smiled. "She's going to your territory next, mousie."_

_The mouse winced. "I know."_

"_Poor pitiful Redwall beasts._ _They won't know what to do."_

_The mouse's eyes darkened and, for a moment, he wore the exact expression Fatefiend did. "There is a darkness to the world these days, Fatefiend. Redwall hasn't escaped its taint. The problem is not that they won't know what to do, but that they will, and they will react too harshly, too viciously. We want to win this war, Fatefiend, but we can't become our enemy."_

"_Then maybe we won't win."_

"_It's not a war of creatures, Fatefiend. It is a war of ideas. If we covert to their ideas to beat them, then we have not won."_

"_Oh, and if they track down and murder each and every one of us, we have?" Fatefiend demanded._

_The mouse sighed and turned away. "Sometimes, ferret, you really need to take your victories where you can."_

"_What victory? What victory could you **possibly** see here?"_

_The mouse looked down thoughtfully at the birdbath. It shimmered, rippled, and changed scenes._

"**_What is it, then? What do you want?"_**

"**_Peace…I've decided I want peace."_**

_Fatefiend froze at the words and looked away. "So? So she says that she wants peace. She knows how to lie."_

_The mouse nodded slowly. "And I know how to sense lies. So would you, if you weren't so blinded by your own guilt."_

"_Ah, right. My guilt…"_

"_A feeling you will have to get past, if you are to continue betraying her."_

"_I'm **not** betraying her, I just know her!" Fatefiend stalked over to the birdbath, looked down at Redsplash sitting near his grave, and spat down at it. The image rippled, turned blood red, and disappeared. "She is **not** what you want her to be, mouse! She is what she is, and she **cannot** change that!"_

"_Ah," the mouse murmured, "so **that's** it. You fear this attempt at morality from your friend will destroy her."_

_Fatefiend turned away. "Don't read between every line, mouse. Sometimes there isn't anything there."_

"_But there is. Here, at least, there is an epic. You know she will not come here when she dies. You know where her soul belongs, and yet you hate her for this attempt at redemption."_

"_I **do not** hate **her**!" Fatefiend whirled around. "I **hate** that she's not **good** enough for you, and I **hate** that I **am**. I **hate** how you can decide not to include Adthe because he's not a squirrel, and how you're going to let that self-destructive **squirrel friend** of Redsplash's in **knowing** who he used to be! I **hate** you, and I **absolutely despise** that no matter **who she tries to be** she will **NEVER** be able to be the one everyone thinks she **should** be."_

"_Then you hate everything you cannot change. I've said before, ferret, you need to grow past your old connections and-"_

_Fatefiend punched the mouse in the face. The mouse was so unprepared his head snapped sideways on his neck and his body followed. The mouse was saved from a fall only by his still-superior reflexes._

"_Don't you **tell me what to do**, mouse!" Fatefiend raged. "You have **no idea **what it's like to feel like this!"_

_The mouse stared at him, one paw lightly massaging his jaw. "You're an idiot, ferret, if you think I don't know what it's like to feel grief. I have watched this world for ten times the seasons you have been alive. If I know **anything**…I know grief."_

"_This isn't **grief**, mouse. I do not **grieve** for Redsplash, I **hate** for her. I would tear this world apart, would tear **you** apart, for her. But there is **nothing** I can do. And as I sit back with you and watch, you're going to **use** her like you use your warrior-puppet, and they're both going to **die** for it. Only, when your precious **Luke** arrives at the Gates, you'll welcome him. When **Redsplash** dies, you're going to look her in the eyes and tell her that she is too **sullied**, too **broken** to come in. You're going to send **her** to hell for a life you **planned** for her! You **made her like this**, mouse! How **dare** you blame her for it?"_

"_I did not make her this way!" The mouse retorted sharply. "I did not **plan out her life**! If I didn't intervene, if I didn't go to her as I went to Luke and to Laflen and to **you**, then **that is all I did**! I would **never** put someone in a situation like that just to watch them break! I am **not** your father."_

_Fatefiend's upper lip curled in disgust and contempt, while his eyes blazed with fury. "You truly believe you had **nothing** to do with her destruction? You truly believe you are blameless in her ruin?"_

"_I am, and I do."_

"_Then you are **insane**. I've looked in their pasts, mouse. I know whose was worse. Yes, fine, **none** of them were happy. But you watched what happened to Red, and you did **nothing**. You coddled Laflen like a crippled cub, but you just watched as Red cried in a dungeon because she was all alone. You didn't tell her that it was going to get better. You never **warned **her what could happen if she just gave in. You could've saved us **all**, mouse, and you just turned your back and let her soul die. And now you stand there and pretend like this could never be **your** fault. Like, if you had influenced her like you influenced Luke, she wouldn't be everything we need her to be. She wouldn't be so **dead** if you'd offered her a chance to **live**!"_

_The mouse stared at him, listening quietly, and then he shook his head. "Ferret, you of all creatures should know that no amount influence can save a damned soul."_

_Fatefiend looked very much like he'd like to punch the mouse again. But, instead, he just took a slow step backwards, towards the arch and the doorway. "You delusional **idiot**…her soul was never **damned**! You did what you did because you felt like gambling. You thought that if you let the world teach her pain, she would learn perseverance. If she was taught true hatred, she would learn the value of love. But you're a **mouse**. Mice know **nothing** about gambling!"_

_The mouse sighed. "What do you want, Fatefiend? Would you like me to admit to this? Would you like me to say that I made a mistake I can never apologize for? I tried to make a perfect hero, and…and it didn't work. I corrupted an innocent soul by looking the other way when it needed me most. I made a **mistake**, Fatefiend. But it wasn't just my mistake that made her the way she is. It was your father's cruelty, and her own blood's betrayal. It was her friendship with a ferret, and her vendetta with a badger. There are far too many forces at work here to blame me for what she is. Even if I **had** influenced her, can you honestly tell me you think it would have changed anything?"_

"_It might've changed **something**." Fatefiend remarked stubbornly and then, slowly, his anger seemed to drain away. He moved to lean heavily against the birdbath, and stared in at the image of Sade leaping in front of Fallen's axe. "It's not fair, mouse. Not fair that I got in here by one stupid act of heroism, and that she won't get in here no matter how many heroic acts she manages. It's all based on **chance**. If I had obeyed my father…if I hadn't been merciful…I would be where Redsplash is going. And maybe…" Fatefiend sighed, "maybe that would have been better…"_

_The mouse glanced at him sharply, surprised. "What makes you think that?"_

_Fatefiend smiled, but there was no happiness behind it. "Because then I'd be far too busy to think about things like this."_


End file.
